Love, Life, and Reincarnations
by Dragonfly-Moonlight
Summary: Things are left unsaid when tragedy strikes. A huge crossover with Speed Racer, Gravitation, Jem, and possibly even FAKE.
1. Say Goodbye

"And you'll only be gone a few days, right?"

"Yes, Inuyasha," Kagome laughed. "I'll only be gone a few days." She watched as the half-demon heaved a sigh before she continued. "You can come and visit me during that time, if you want. You know . . . keep me updated on how everyone's doing."

It wasn't much but it was all the reassurance he needed. He smiled slightly and nodded. Her smile grew wider. On impulse, she hugged him then turned towards the well.

"I'll see you in three days, Inuyasha! I promise!" she called out then disappeared down the well. It had taken some time but, with Sango's and Miroku's help, she had convinced Inuyasha to take a break from collecting the shards of the Shikon jewel.

'Come to think of it, he took it rather well when I told him that we needed to take a break,' she mused. 'He started to protest but gave in quicker than what he normally does. I usually have to 'sit' him in order to go home. What gives? I'll have to ask him about it when I see again.'

The feel of the ground meeting her feet brought her back to reality and Kagome began to climb out of the well, lugging her backpack with her as she went. Three days of school, reviews and tests, and a family function awaited. Though she didn't look forward to taking the tests, she did look forward to seeing her cousins once more. They wouldn't be there long but it'd be long enough to catch up and just hang around.

'Thank you, Inuyasha,' she smiled, making her way into the house. 'You don't know how much this means to me.'

As she walked inside, however, she had a funny feeling that maybe, maybe it wasn't such a good time to have left the feudal era.

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"You're awfully calm this evening," a voice commented. Inuyasha's ears twitched but he didn't take the bait. He'd heard Miroku approaching, the houshi's footfall barely noticeable to anyone but him in the stillness of the early shade of evening.

'It'd figure that he'd be the one to follow me out here,' he growled to himself. His eyes were fixed on the Goshinboku tree. There were a lot of memories tied to that tree, memories that he couldn't let go of, no matter how hard he tried. Miroku stepped next to him, his eyes also fixed on the old tree.

"Kikyou is coming, isn't she?"

"Huh?" The question had caught him off-guard and his head snapped in Miroku's direction.

"The reason why you gave in so easily to Kagome . . . You're meeting up with Kikyou while she's gone, aren't you?" The houshi's eyes narrowed.

Inuyasha felt the anger rising in him and he clenched his hands tightly. He refrained from punching Miroku in the face for his comment. The family get-together had been important to Kagome. He had seen it in her eyes.

"No . . ." he said through clenched teeth. "She said she had a family function to attend. Didn't you hear her, Miroku?"

"Well, yes, but . . ."

"But?" Inuyasha prompted. Miroku's eyes narrowed.

"You're up to something, Inuyasha."

"And what makes you say that?" Inuyasha turned away, his cheeks turning a light shade of pink.

"You are up to something, aren't you?" Miroku's voice held an accusatory tone to it.

'He probably thinks I'm going to sneak off to see Kikyou. The lecher. Well, I'll show him,' Inuyasha thought with a smirk.

"Maybe," he grinned slyly. "I'll be leaving in the morning."

"What? How come?" Inuyasha relished in the houshi's surprise.

"Promise not to tell anyone, Miroku? Not even Sango or Kaede?"

"Yes, of course," the houshi nodded, frowning.

'You're far too eager to think the worst, Miroku.'

"Well, Kagome mentioned that her birthday was coming up . . ."

"I remember . . . She called it sweet sixteen, I believe." A knowing smile suddenly spread across his face. "You're going to get her something, aren't you?"

Inuyasha nodded.

"I've already picked it out and paid for it. I just need to check on how . . . everything's coming along so it'll be ready in time."

"Where . . ."

"Not far, actually. I should be back by nightfall."

The two stood in silence for a few moments. Without any warning, Miroku slapped him on the shoulder, his grin nearly touching his ears.

"You never cease to amaze me, Inuyasha."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded.

"Oh, not much," Miroku winked as he walked away. "See you in the morning, Inuyasha."

The houshi disappeared into the night, leaving Inuyasha alone once more.

"Damn monk," he muttered but his tone held no malice. He had come to expect the houshi to be confusing like that. Inuyasha blinked and shook his head then turned his attention back to the Goshinboku tree.

Two more nights and Kagome would be back. He could tell her then how he truly felt. Then he shook his head again.

'Yeah right,' he snorted to himself. 'Like she'd believe me after the number of times she's caught me with Kikyou and heard my declarations of love to her. I can't say that I blame her, though. Maybe my gift to her will convince her . . . And I do need to talk to Kikyou at some point. I know I'm not going to be able to fulfill my promise to her so long as she remains separated from Kagome.'

A familiar scent in the air caught his attention and he growled. Kouga. He turned just as the wolf demon came to a stop in front of him. His hand went to the hilt of his Tetsusaiga.

"What do you want, you mangy wolf?"

"Is it true?"

Inuyasha blinked but never lowered his guard. Kouga had an uncanny knack for annoying the hell out of him, especially when Kagome was near.

'And I don't like the look in his eyes.'

Kouga's eyes had an unusual gleam to them, like he could go berserk at any moment.

"Is what true?"

"Is it true that you've been leading my woman on while seeing some undead priestess?" he spat.

The anger he had felt before began to rise again. First Miroku and now Kouga. He'd had enough. His decisions were his to make, no one else's. Sure, they may not have been the best of decisions but he now knew what he wanted. Kikyou would no longer be in the picture. Kagome had opened a whole new world to him and he wasn't about to let her go. He just needed a chance to explain it to Kikyou.

'But how did Kouga find out about Kikyou?'

He decided he didn't care. Kouga had to leave. Now.

"That, Kouga," he said dangerously, "is between me and Kagome. It's none of your business."

"If it affects Kagome, it is my business," the wolf demon snapped. "Prepare to die."

He had started to draw his fang when he flew backwards, crashing into the Goshinboku tree. Kouga's hands grasped his throat, cutting his breath short. He hadn't even seen Kouga move.

'How did he become so fast?'

"Kagome is MY woman," he hissed. "I'll fight you for her and I will defeat you. You won't hurt her anymore, dog face! I swear it."

Another punch landed on his stomach, knocking the wind out of him even more. Pain erupted in his head as he crashed into another tree. Inuyasha staggered to his feet, finally grasping and drawing the Tetsusaiga.

"You don't get it, do you, Kouga?" he rasped, his voice barely above a whisper. His breath came in ragged gasps. "She only sees you as a friend. Nothing more. Nothing less. Get it through your head, you idiot!"

"Things have a way of changing, mutt face. You know that as well as I do."

Kouga lashed out again, catching Inuyasha in the chest with his foot. For a moment, he nearly lost his grip on the Tetsusaiga. He panicked. Instinctively, he grasped the hilt tighter and tried to regain his footing. Another tree had broken his fall but it didn't ease the growing pain in his back or allow him to catch his breath.

'I can take him,' he told himself. 'This is Kouga. He's run away from most every major battle he's ever encountered. I'll send him running and Kagome will never have to know that we fought.'

"Come on and fight, mutt face!"

A sword being drawn rang in his ears and he moved to block. Breathing had become somewhat easier but not by much. It took everything he had to just block Kouga's blade.

"This is it, mutt face. Time to settle the score," Kouga growled. Still blocking the Tetsusaiga, Kouga punched once more . . .

Something clattered to the ground. He heard it and it sounded like a weapon. A heavy one. His arms suddenly felt heavy, like they'd been weighted down with several large stones, and he stumbled back.

"As I said, mutt face . . . Kagome is mine."

Kouga swung one more time and the world erupted in a haze of blood and pain. A twist in his side told him that he'd been stabbed but it didn't seem real. He gulped for air but his throat burned. Memories flooded his vision as he fell backwards. His mother smiling at him and whirling him around in the air, riding in the riverboat with Kikyou . . . but most of them were of Kagome. Her eyes, her smile, her scent . . . Even now, he saw her. She was close enough to touch. He reached out.

"K-Kagome . . ."

His eyes closed as the pain vanished and the rest of the world dissolved into darkness. Kagome's smile faded as his vision darkened and he tried to grasp onto that image. A golden-haired woman appeared before him, along with a raven-haired man, and they smiled at him.

"Time to go home . . . Inuyasha."

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Kouga watched as Inuyasha closed his eyes and exhaled one final time, his arm dropping to the ground, and he became still. An elongated dagger protruded itself from the half-demon's chest, where Kouga had stabbed him. There were very few ways to kill a demon and most of them required certain kinds of poisons or blades. Inuyasha had such a blade but now he'd no longer be able to wield it. The half-demon's blade transformed from its massive size to its rusty, dented disguise.

'He's gone. The stupid mutt is finally gone and Kagome will be mine.'

Sheathing his katana, Kouga took off, leaving the dagger where he had implanted it. He had to wash the blood off him. It wouldn't do any good to present himself to Kagome covered in the blood of that two-timing half- demon.

'Kagome . . . I can make you happy. Happier than what mutt-face ever could. I swear to you that I'll prove it.'

As he walked away, however, a small twinge of guilt began to nibble away at him. Would Kagome truly be happy with him? She'd always been by Inuyasha's side. How would she react if she knew that he had killed Inuyasha and that he had called out for her just before he drew his last breath?

'No! She mustn't find out that it was me. That would really break her heart. And I can't stand to see her hurting more than what she already has. She must never find out. Never.'

So he told himself as he found a stream and washed himself off. Then he headed back to Edo. They'd be looking for Inuyasha soon and they'd find his body. Kagome would be devastated to see him dead and she'd need someone strong and courageous to help her get over him. And Kouga intended to be that person.

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Kagome climbed out of the well and sprinted towards the village. For the last three days, she'd had an awful feeling that something terrible had happened and it had shadowed her until she couldn't take it any longer. As soon as her visiting relatives had left, she had gone down the well, forgetting the supplies that she needed to bring with her.

'Please let it be my imagination,' she prayed. 'Please let everyone be okay.'

As she closed in on the village, she saw two figures standing at the edge of the village. Sango and Kaede but she saw no sign of Miroku, Inuyasha, or Shippou. Kagome frowned. Something was up.

'Where's Inuyasha? He always greets me, no matter what. And we didn't have a fight before I left. What's going on?'

Now that she thought of it, she hadn't seen him during the three days that she'd been gone and she had invited him to come and see her. And he hadn't been at the well, waiting for her, either. Normally, he got impatient and went after her when she'd been gone for any given length of time. She stopped in front of the old miko and the demon slayer.

"Kagome . . ."

"Sango, what's going on? Where's Inuyasha? Why wasn't he at the well waiting for me?"

"Kagome, I don't know how to tell you this . . ."

Tears began to form in Sango's eyes and Kagome noticed the solemness to the village that hadn't been there when she left. She saw several of the men constructing a funeral pyre but still saw no sign of Miroku or Inuyasha.

"I'm sorry, Kagome, but Inuyasha . . ." Sango choked on her words, tears flowing freely down her cheeks. "Inuyasha's dead."

"What? How?" Her eyes began to sting and something warm ran down her cheeks.

"We do not know, child," Kaede murmured, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "We just know that he'd gone into the forest after ye had left and that was the last time we saw him alive. Miroku went looking for him yesterday morning and found his body by the Goshinboku tree. By then, it was too late. He'd been dead for at least a day. There was nothing we could do for him. I'm so sorry, Kagome."

Her chest constricted and she took several deep breaths, dropping to her knees. She heard Shippou calling her name. She even felt him latching onto her shoulder. The kitsune had been crying. He still cried. And she couldn't blame him. Despite their differences, Inuyasha had always looked after Shippou, guiding him in ways she knew she'd never understand.

'Like the big brother he never had,' she thought idly, cuddling the child in her arms. 'Why did this have to happen? Why now? Who could have done this?'

Finally, Kagome caught her breath. Tears flowed down her cheeks but she could handle the tears. She just couldn't handle the dull ache in her heart or the thought of never seeing Inuyasha again. But, for Shippou's sake and her own, she had to pull herself together.

'Inuyasha would want us to be strong and to continue on our quest for the Shikon jewel.'

"Lady Kagome . . ."

She looked up to see Miroku standing in front of her, holding Inuyasha's Tetsusaiga and rosary, and she knew that he no longer would be coming for her anymore, the realization a cold slap to the face. Kagome hadn't even heard him walk up.

'This is it . . . He's truly gone. There's no coming back.'

Kagome took the fang and rosary then pushed herself to her feet. Shippou's crying had subsided a little but she knew that the worst had yet to come for the kitsune.

'And he's suffered so much already,' she thought morosely. 'First his father and now Inuyasha . . . how much more will we have to suffer before the end comes?'

"Where . . . where is he?"

"In Kaede's hut," he murmured. Standing tall, Kagome made her way into the old miko's home. She steeled herself for the worst, though she couldn't imagine anyone other than Sesshomaru getting the best of Inuyasha without anyone noticing the battle. A dismembered Inuyasha was what she had envisioned. What she saw, however, shocked her.

Instead of his body being mutilated, Inuyasha looked intact, his expression calm and peaceful, as if he merely slept and had not lost his life. He'd been dressed in white, an unusual colour for him but Kagome felt it appropriate. A white cloth had been draped over his neck, and his hands rested on his chest.

'He looks so peaceful, so angelic,' she smiled faintly. 'He doesn't even look like he suffered at all. At least it isn't as bad as I had feared.'

"When Miroku brought him back," Shippou whispered, "he had a curved blade with an ornate handle sticking out of him. Why he hadn't taken it out, I don't know. Maybe he thought that there was still a chance that Inuyasha was still alive and I think even Kaede hoped for it as well, even though it was obvious he was gone. I could smell death all over him. But I do know this. Sango said only the most powerful of demons use blades like that, especially for assassinations."

'And the only one powerful enough to even take Inuyasha on without the use of jewel shards is . . .'

"Kagome?"

Her heart leapt into her throat and she whirled around. Kouga stood in the door, a mournful expression on his face. He took a step forward.

"Kouga, what are you doing here?"

"I heard the news," he whispered. "I left as soon as I could . . . I didn't want to believe it, Inuyasha being dead. But I can see now that it is. I'm so sorry, Kagome. I know you two were friends."

'And maybe a little more than just friends, if I was reading him right,' she thought, tears forming in her eyes once more.

"Thank you, Kouga. I . . ."

"Kagome . . ." Sango appeared behind him, interrupting their conversation. "The villagers are getting anxious to perform the ceremony. Inuyasha's blood can be picked up by any demon within range . . ."

"Yes," she nodded, moving away from Inuyasha's body. "Let's get this over with. We have no time to waste."

Kagome cringed at how callous she was sure she sounded but Sango was right. Inuyasha had been Edo's best defense since he'd been unsealed by her hand. His death would entice any demon to attack and she would never be able to live with herself if anything happened to any of the villagers.

She brushed by Kouga and out into the sunlight. A beautiful day awaited . . . a beautiful day without Inuyasha. Several men stood outside, waiting. Kagome gave a slight nod then walked away with Sango, more tears forming in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry, Inuyasha. I should have said it before I left you . . . I love you so much. And now you'll never know."

Sango wrapped an arm around her shoulder, guiding her to another hut where some clothes for her to wear had been lain out. It was time.

"Goodbye, Inuyasha."


	2. We Belong

The Goshinboku tree. _He_ had been pinned to that tree for fifty years, his breath locked inside him. It seemed fitting that he had died in front of it but Inuyasha's death unsettled him. He had fallen in battle but not against either of the mikos or against Naraku. The damage to the surrounding area was too minimal for Naraku and the village had not been raised to the ground. A battle against either of the mikos would have caused less damage. Another had battled the hanyou, a wolf youkai, and he had used a spell to increase his speed and a bit of his strength, something that was undetectable to the hanyou. Sesshomaru detected the remnants of the spell, along with the scent of burnt flesh, in the air. He wrinkled his nose in distaste. Both smells made him sick.

Sesshomaru supposed that he should have been grateful that his brother was finally dead. He'd wanted this moment, had dreamt about it ever since his brother had been driven from the Western Lands, and had thought his dream come true when Inuyasha had been sealed. Now . . . now he couldn't bring himself to feel anything. He may have hated Inuyasha but he'd had a growing respect for the hanyou. His temper had begun to even out some, though he continued to rush into battle with his sword drawn and a battle cry on his lips. Inuyasha's death left a bitter, acidic taste in his mouth.

"What are you doing here?" a voice growled. He had sensed the wolf youkai coming, recognizing the scent of his brother's killer. A slight smirk graced his features.

"Facing my brother's killer, it would seem," he replied, turning around slowly. All colour had drained from the wolf's face and something flashed in his eyes. For a moment, he could smell the other's fear before he managed to reign it in, feigning a look of complete innocence.

"Are you now?" he snorted. "And how are you going to prove that I did it?"

"Prove? Who says I'm going to prove anything?" Sesshomaru said. "I know the miko will have a hard time believing me, should I tell her, but she will believe me."

"Ha! Don't make me laugh, mutt-face," the wolf scoffed. "She already believes that you killed Inuyasha. Said you're the only one capable of taking him on without the use of jewel shards. But don't worry. I'll take good care of Kagome now that Inuyasha's dead."

'So the miko's the cause of all this and unknowingly as well. Inuyasha, you should have seen this coming.'

"I'm sure the miko will sleep much better knowing why you killed Inuyasha, wolf," Sesshomaru sneered. "Oh, and call me mutt-face again and I'll personally see to it that the miko never even remembers your name. She is, after all, a worthy mate for a youkai lord such as myself, given the proper training and spells."

"Why you . . ." The wolf lunged for him but he evaded the attack as he would have a child's. Or Inuyasha's.

"You can't possibly beat me, wolf," he taunted. "Not without Inuyasha. You have three days to tell the miko the truth or I shall tell her myself. And she will listen to me, wolf. Mark my words."

Without another word, Sesshomaru walked away.

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Kouga watched as the inuyoukai walked away from him, calmly . . . as if there had never been any exchange between them. His entire body trembled with rage. He didn't like this youkai with his calm, smug attitude. He didn't like the fact that this youkai had somehow known the truth and would definitely tell Kagome. What he hated most of all was this youkai's scent and that he was, in fact, Inuyasha's brother. The family resemblance had been strong.

'But he's a demon lord,' a little voice whispered. 'There's no way you can beat him. Not without more jewel shards. You might as well tell Kagome the truth. You can't keep what you've done a secret forever!'

'No! I can't tell her! It'll destroy any chance that I might have with her!' he cried.

'You never had a chance with her,' the voice retorted. 'She was always by Inuyasha's side. Never yours. You can see it, Kouga. You know it. She wants Inuyasha back and his death is tearing her up inside.'

'But she can come to love me in time,' Kouga reasoned. 'All I need is that time. I just need to get rid of mutt-face's brother . . . and I think I know how.'

'How? He's a youkai lord. He'd smell a trap before you'd even be able to detect him,' that little voice nagged.

'Not this time,' Kouga shook his head. 'Not this time.'

Kouga trotted off. He had a youkai lord to face off against and only three days to prepare. He had to win, if only for the sake of his sanity.

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Sesshomaru surveyed the surrounding area carefully and suppressed a sigh. He didn't know why he had confronted the wolf youkai about Inuyasha's death. Maybe it had been the fact that the hanyou hadn't been able to detect the spell that had led to his demise. No hanyou would. Maybe it had been because Inuyasha had been the last living family he had left.

'Or maybe because things remained unresolved between you two,' a voice stated. It sounded very much like his father's voice. 'Despite your differences, he's still your brother and the only one that you'll ever have.'

'Hai, he was my brother and the only one who could give me a good challenge.'

"It's about time you showed up," a voice commented. "Three days is a long time to make someone wait."

Sesshomaru's eyes widened. He hadn't detected the wolf youkai's presence and he'd been lost in thought, making him an easy target. Then his eyes narrowed. The wolf was cheating once more.

"You haven't told her," he stated coldly.

"No, I haven't," the wolf stated, stepping into the open. "And I'm not about to let you tell her, either."

"You aren't?" Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at him. "I do believe that you are outclassed, coward."

"What did you just call me?" the youkai growled.

"Coward," he repeated, "for that's what you are. A coward. Only a coward hides his scent from an enemy. A true demon faces his enemy with everything he has and wins his own battles based on his prowess. Not spells and weak tricks."

"I am no coward." The wolf advanced.

"Aren't you? You resorted to trickery and cheating to murder someone and for what? A female who will never love you, whose love will always be for a hanyou."

"Shut up!" came the howl. "She's MY woman, always has been and always will be!"

"Is she?" Sesshomaru smirked. With a feral growl, the wolf youkai growled.

Sesshomaru had anticipated this. The wolf had a similar temper to Inuyasha's but he lacked something, something that Inuyasha had always held close to him.

'Closer than any memories that he had of his mother,' he thought as he sidestepped the wolf, 'and that was the will to survive. Inuyasha had it rough. Scorned and mocked by demons. Scorned and feared by humans. He belonged to both worlds and yet neither accepted him. It created a shell around him, a shell I had once believed to be unbreakable. I was wrong. And you, wolf . . . You're wrong as well. The miko will never love you. Not the way that you want her to.'

He evaded another attack by the wolf, trying not to be cornered. If the wolf hadn't confessed his crime to the miko and he had taken the time to hide his scent, he had lain a trap for him. And Sesshomaru wasn't about to spring it.

'But evading is getting me nowhere. Though I have no intentions of ever making the miko mine, I do intend on telling her the truth. Father would have wanted me to.'

Finally, he tired of evading. The game the wolf had plaed had been a trifle amusing at first but now it annoyed him. When his opponent charged again, he stayed in place, shoving his fist out at the right moment. Sesshomaru watched in smug satisfaction as the younger youkai's body slammed into a tree, splintering it in twain. His satisfaction turned into shock as something pierced the back of his neck and he couldn't breathe. Somewhere, very faintly, he heard a yell then his world went dark.

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Kouga glared at the form of the dead inuyoukai's body. Killing him had not been nearly as easy as killing Inuyasha had been. The youkai lord had somehow figured out that he had lain a trap. How he had figured it out, Kouga didn't know. And he didn't care.

"Didn't matter in the end, did it, you bastard?' he spat. 'You still sprang it and I was still able to kill you. Now to make sure that you're truly dead and no one discovers you. At least . . . not for a while, anyway.'

He unsheathed his katana and brought it down . . .

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He couldn't breathe. Something had poked him in the neck and now some strange man stood over him with a really big knife, poised to use it on him. The man had a bad gleam in his eyes so he did the only thing he could think of. He screamed.

"OFUKURO!"

As soon as he had screamed out, his eyes flew open and he scrambled to get out of his bed. But the sheets and blankets had grabbed onto him, tangling him up and keeping him from escaping.

"OFUKURO!"

By now, he had tears in his eyes. The sound of footsteps coming down the hall then the flick of a lightswitch told him he'd been heard. Strong yet gentle arms embraced him, untangling him from the monster sheets and blankets, and a warm body cradled him close. The gentle scent of lavender greeted his nose. Sniffling, he buried his face in his mother's chest.

He'd been in his new home for some time now, the only other parents he'd known now gone forever. That's what the lady in that one place had told him and he still didn't have anyone to chase away the monsters of his dreams. Then they had told him that he and his baby brother had a new home, in a place called Amerika. His new mom and dad, when they had first seen him, did something his parents had never quite done before, though he knew he was different from the other children there, even different from his baby brother. They loved him, had even given him hugs and kisses that first day and had never stopped. They played games with him, read him bedtime stories, and chased away the monsters that lived in the closet, under the bed, and in his dreams. He even gained another brother and he rather liked that fact. But, at that moment in time, he was scared. He wanted someone to hold him, to make the bad man go away and never return. Once in his new mother's arms, listening to her soothe him in Japanese and English, he did what any self-respecing four-year-old would do. He cried.

"Shhh, it's okay, baby. It's okay. I'm right here. I won't let anything happen to you. Ever."

"Promise?" he whispered, wiping away the tears that flowed down his cheeks. She smiled and kissed his forehead, wiping away some of the tears herself.

"Hai, Sesshomaru. I promise."


	3. Independence Day

Recommended Music: Proud to Be An American (can't remember the artist) and Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American) by Toby Keith

* * *

Ryan groaned and buried his face in the back of his wife's neck as the sun began to peek inside their room to wake them up. If it hadn't been for the ninety degree weather they'd been having, the blankets would have flown over their heads and they'd be snuggling dangerously close to each other. Maybe even then some. But it had been like an oven in their home all night long, making it uncomfortable and miserable for them and their three sons. He and Torie had been up off and on all night trying to soothe a cranky four-year-old who kept kicking his blankets off and knocking his fan down whenever he got too cold. Every time the fan had hit the floor, Torie literally jumped out of bed and ran down the hall to make sure he was all right before she finally conceded a small amount of defeat with the child, aiming the fan above him so he wouldn't get chilled. Their ten-month-old and nine-month-old sons had not fared any better during the night, crying out whenever they were uncomfortable or out in hunger. Even the cats and dogs had been miserable, sleeping in the cool spots in the living room instead of their normal spots in the bedrooms. Next to him, his wife stirred and he tightened his grip around her waist. 

"Not yet," he murmured, eliciting a small giggle out of her.

"Not yet, huh?" She turned herself around so they ended up facing each other and she could snuggle up to him a little. "And what will Sesshomaru say if he walks in here and sees us acting like two lovesick teens?"

"He'll probably say, 'Mommy, I'm hungry,' then crawl into bed with us," Ryan replied, stealing a kiss from her. A kiss that she returned promptly and warmly.

"Mm-hmm . . . So it's best if we don't start anything right now, love."

"Aww, but I miss starting things," he pouted mockingly, kissing her again.

"Later," she said in between kisses. "Like when the children are in bed for the night and no threat of them waking up like they did last night."

They continued kissing for a while longer until the sound of little feet entered their room and a little boy had snuggled himself tightly between them.

"Morning, Mommy. Morning, Daddy," he yawned.

"Morning, sleepy-head," Ryan grinned. "Excited about tonight?" To that, the little one shrugged, causing Ryan's grin to grow wider.

"I bet you're more hungry than excited about fireworks right now, huh?" Torie stage-whispered. Sesshomaru nodded his head vigorously, grinning. Ryan laughed with Torie. When the time came, Sesshomaru would be more than excited about watching the annual Fourth of July fireworks display. He and Torie already had their area staked out, one of the best places to be that day and they'd been there every year since they'd been together.

As Torie scooped the four-year-old into her arms and headed out of their room, Ryan reflected on how their lives had changed in just the last year or so, from Torie telling him that they were finally going to have a baby (they started trying to have a baby after six months of dating) to Little Ryan's birth in September. Then a phone call from his aunt in Japan towards the end of October changed things even more. She'd told him that there were two little boys, brothers, going up for adoption. Her supervisor had given her and only her permission to call them and offer them their choice between the two. His older brother, Yoshi, would have been called next if they had declined. When Torie had seen the pictures of the boys and learned their birthdates, she had wanted both. She couldn't bear the thought of separating the boys. So they had put in for both, expecting a long wait before they'd even be able to bring the boys to their home in Philadelphia. But fate had been on their side. The papers went through quickly and they had brought the boys, Sesshomaru Hakkai Taisho and his baby half-brother Inuyasha Kenshin Taisho, home the first part of December. The boys were full-blooded Japanese. He and Torie had seen pictures of their parents. Inuyasha looked full Japanese, except his eyes were amethyst. He and their son could have passed as twins, except for the three week difference between them. Sesshomaru, however, didn't look full Japanese. His eyes ewre more of a golden-amber than brown and his hair silver-ish blonde.

'And he'd been partially neglected because of it,' Ryan surmised as he checked on the two sleeping infants before heading down the stairs. 'He didn't even know how to react to Torie giving him kisses and hugs, cuddling him, and playing games with him at first. He never smiled. Now . . . now he's all smiles and hugs. He's certainly grown quite attached to her.'

His wife's voice from the kitchen as she began to sing one of the many songs about America that she happened to know. He smiled as she continued to sing, Sesshomaru's laughter mingling with hers. Ryan stepped into the kitchen, brushing back some of his dark locks.

Torie stood in front of the counter, the four-year-old balanced on her hip. As she sang, she swayed and twirled about, pulling out bowls and glasses from the cupboards and spoons from the silverware drawer. Her long, golden tresses swung with her as she pulled out cereal from the pantry and milk and juice from the refrigerator. In that moment, with a great swelling of emotion in his heart, he had decided that his wife looked incredibly sexy in her light grey shorts and tank top and with a child on her hip. He couldn't have loved her more in that moment.

As she glided across the floor, their eyes met and she smiled, setting Sesshomaru in his chair with practiced ease. Her song changed to Toby Keith's _Courtesy of The Red, White, and Blue_as she turned around and poured the child his cereal and juice then placed it in front of him.

"Mommy, am I Amerikan?" Sesshomaru inquired, taking a bite of his cereal. Her smile grew a little wider and her brown eyes glimmered. Torie leaned over him and planted a kiss on his forehead.

"You are now, baby," she stated. "Eat your breakfast while I go check on your brothers, kay?"

He nodded big nods, still chewing his food. Ryan shook his head as she breezed by him, his hand catching her arm.

"Have you any idea as to how much I love you?" he murmured.

"Have you any idea as to how much I love you?" she inquired back. Their lips touched for a moment then their eyes met. Without another word, she continued towards the stairs and he went to fix his own breakfast. Sesshomaru flashed him a toothy grin as he sat down next to him.

"Mommy's silly," he giggled.

"More than you'll ever know, Sesshomaru," Ryan agreed. "More than you'll ever know."

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The morning flew by rather uneventfully in the O'Connell household. Or at least as uneventfully as any home would be with four males living in it, three of them under the age of five. Torie didn't mind, though. There were no other guys in the world that could take the place of her four, even when they drove her crazy. But, at the end of even the worst day, when she watched them sleep, she knew she wouldn't have had it any other way. Boys would be boys. And, she had to admit to herself with a hefty pat on her back, she could get herself, her husband, and her sons fed, washed, and dressed, and get a lunch and supper packed into a cooler and a picnic basket by 8:30 in the morning. With their cats and dogs fed, watered and able to get outside should they need it, and a neighbor to check on them during the day, Torie tucked Little Ryan and Inuyasha into the double stroller, packed some extra diapers and bottles into the diaper bag, stuffed her money into her pockets and headed out the door. Ryan, with Sesshomaru perched on his shoulders, waited outside with the red Radio Flyer that carried the cooler and picnic basket. She grinned at how adorable her guys looked in their patriotic shirts.

"Okay, the parade starts at ten and Jack's already got the sidewalk in front of the office saved for us. It's a lovely day for a walk, isn't it?" she grinned.

"Beats trying to get through traffic. Do we have enough blankets?" Ryan inquired. They started walking.

"Took some extra ones to the office yesterday and the grill is still there from last week's employee barbecue," she answered. "We are set, my love."

"What about fireworks? Jack said something about having some sparklers and morning glories for the kids to play with."

"Robert and Val are the ones bringing those. Next year is our turn to bring them. Relax, Ryan. We're covered. I'm not going to let anything ruin the Fourth for the kids," Torie grinned as they made their way towards Center City. The people that they passed commented on how cute or adorable the boys looked and cooed at the infants while Sesshomaru played shy. By the time they had reached the office complex, Little Ryan and Inuyasha had fallen asleep in the stroller and Sesshomaru was fast on his way to falling asleep. If it hadn't been for the parade, Torie would have taken him inside the building and rocked him to sleep. Thankfully, Jack had pulled out some lawn chairs for them to sit in. Torie placed the stroller between two of them then took Sesshomaru so Ryan could take the wagon inside. The toddler yawned a little and curled up on her lap.

"Excited about the parade, Sesshomaru?"

"Uh-huh!"

"Good." Torie kissed his forehead and they settled in to watch the parade.

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He had to admit, he liked this holiday his parents had been talking about lately. The parade had actually gone by in front of him, where he could almost touch the people in it, instead of on a TV. Sure, he had taken a nap after the parade but Sesshomaru had already concluded that his new mommy didn't play fair when it came to nap time. He'd fallen asleep a lot quicker than what he normally did. Mommy had hummed and sang a little as she had rocked him. A dirty trick, to be sure, but he didn't care. She loved him, so did his new daddy, and he loved them.

'That's all that matters,' he had told himself as they had joined a large crowd of people wandering the city. They had done some shopping and taken a tour of the city (his mother's insistence) and stopped to see what his parents had called the Liberty Bell, taking a family photo of them in front of it.. Now they waited for the fireworks display, his baby brothers cradled in his parents' arms.

"Mommy . . ."

"Yes, baby?"

"When are the fireworks going to start?" He'd been desperately trying not to ask that question. The other children there had been asking their parents that nonstop, it seemed like, and they were becoming a little strained. His curiosity finally got the better of him.

"Should be any time now, baby," she replied. "It's starting to get dark out now."

"Hey, Torie . . . we have some sparklers left," someone called out. It sounded like his Aunt Val. "Is it all right if we light some for Sesshomaru?"

His eyes lit up and he looked at his mother, his expression hopeful and pleading. The other children there had been running around with sparklers and morning glories until the adults had put a stop to it, saying it was too dangerous to run around with them. He'd gotten one sparkler the entire time and had loved how it had burned bright blue, like his daddy's eyes. Of course, he hadn't run around with his. Mommy had said not to so he didn't.

"Sure," she smiled. "Bring them over." Then she looked at him just as he was about to scream out "Yay!" and jump around. "Same rule applies, Sesshomaru. No running with the sparklers. In fact, I want you to stay by me with them. Got it?"

"Got it," he echoed. Sesshomaru hugged her then, trying to be somewhat careful of Inuyasha in her arms. The sudden hug brought an "Ack" then a playful "Help me! He's attacking me!" but she returned it, kissing his cheek then tickling his side. He squealed and laughed, nearly landing on his rump in his attempt to get away. His daddy laughed as well. If they hadn't been holding his brothers, they would have chased him a little or swung him upside down to bounce him on his head, though his head never hit the ground for some reason. He bounced but never on his head. His brothers, however, were slightly on the ornery side, as someone had put it. Mommy kept saying it was the weather. Too hot for babies to be outside for too long, she'd said.

His Uncle Robert approached and handed his daddy the extra sparklers. Sesshomaru promptly stood straight up, his expression serious.

"What do you say, Sesshomaru?" his mother whispered.

"Thank you, Unca Robert!"

"You're welcome," he grinned, ruffling his already messy hair. His daddy held out one of the sparklers while his uncle lit it then handed it to him. This one burned white and he watched it, transfixed, as it burned itself out. He'd been handed a second one, his dad lighting it as he held it, when a shrill whistle filled the air. Sesshomaru turned just as something exploded high in the air, creating a shower of green sparks and white stars.

"Mommy, Daddy, look!" he almost shouted, smiling.

"We see it, baby."

Sesshomaru stood next to his mother's outstretched leg, his attention fixed on the nearly spent fire stick in his hand and the rain of fireworks going off in the sky . . .

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"Did you enjoy the fireworks, Sesshomaru?"

She already knew the answer to the question, smiling warmly at the number of times he kept crying out, "Look!" and pointing to the sky. The little boy yawned and nodded, snuggling himself further into the blankets. Her smile grew warmer then she kissed his forehead. His eyes closed and she tucked the blankets over his shoulders. The night promised to be cooler than the previous night. Her children would sleep well tonight.

"Good," she whispered. "Good night, baby."

"Night, Mommy," he murmured sleepily. She turned off the light then headed for the nursery. Ryan was waiting for her there. Two more little ones needed to be tucked into bed then they could rest. Tomorrow was a new day.


	4. Happy Birthday, Kagome

"Kagome-sama?"

At the mention of her name, Kagome raised her head to meet the shimmering brown eyes of Rin. The young girl looked as if she'd been crying. She touched her own cheeks to test something and, sure enough, she'd been crying as well. They'd been doing that a lot lately, it seemed liked. Letting out a soft sigh, Kagome held her arms out to the young girl.

Two years. Two long and trying years had passed since Inuyasha and Sesshomaru had passed away. Four days after they had burned Inuyasha's body they'd found Jaken and a distraught Rin crying over Sesshomaru's body. Given that Sesshomaru had done an honorable act by taking in Rin as his ward, they gave him the same burial as Inuyasha. She still crinkled her nose at the thought of their burnt flesh. It had also left them wondering what to do with Sesshomaru's swords. As Kagome had taken the Tetsusaiga, they'd decided to give Rin the Tensaiga. It had helped that the little girl had insisted she keep it to remember the youkai lord by since he had used it to revive her. Tokijin, on the other hand, had presented a problem. Sesshomaru had been the only one powerful enough to wield the sword and none of them dared to touch it for fear of it controlling them in the same manner it had controlled Kaijimbo. It had taken some effort and a great deal of cooperation between Totosai and several monks and priestesses strong in spiritual power, but they had managed to purify and exorcize Tokijin, destroying the sword in the process.

'Once this quest is over, I'm taking her and Shippou with me through the well,' she told herself as she cradled the girl in her arms. 'I can't leave them here. They've already suffered enough loss in their short lives. They're not going to lose me as well.'

"Kagome-sama?" Rin's whisper broke into her thoughts.

"Yes, Rin?"

"Do you think Lord Sesshomaru and Inuyasha are watching over us?"

"Hai . . . I believe that they are, Rin, and I believe that they'd want us to succeed."

"I think so, too," the girl looked up and smiled. She settled into Kagome's arms and the two girls ended up watching the campfire before too much longer. Shippou and Kirara joined them after a few moments, and Sango and Miroku began to prepare the evening meal. Behind them, Jaken fed Uhn and Ah. They had witnessed many nights like this and Kagome often wondered if Sesshomaru and Inuyasha, if they hadn't been killed, would have eventually joined forces. Both brothers had been formidable in their own rights but joined together, they would have been unstoppable.

'And Naraku would be extremely hard-pressed to destroy either one of them, even with the Shikon no Tama. But where would that leave Kouga?'

The wolf youkai had been scarce lately. After Inuyasha had died, he came around constantly, showering her with affections . . . affections that, even after two years of having him around, she didn't feel compelled to return. Her heart still belonged to Inuyasha.

"Kagome?"

"Yes, Sango?" She didn't look up from the fire.

"How are things in your era?"

"As well as they can," she replied absently. She had recently made a trip home to take a few tests and re-stock their supplies. Her mother had also given her some news. "Mama's made some decisions . . ."

"Like what?" The taijiya sat next to her.

"We're going to be leaving the shrine in a few months," she murmured. "Permanently. Mama's bought a house in America. We need to make a move against Naraku and soon."

"You're leaving us?" Shippou cried.

"No, Shippou, I'm not," she stated firmly. "You and Rin are coming with me. And, if Sango and Miroku like, they can come, too. I've already talked to Mama about it."

"How would we get through the well?" Sango inquired.

"I'm not sure . . . yet."

"But you are thinking of something, right, Kagome?"

"I am, Miroku," she nodded.

"What about Master Jaken?"

"I do not wish to go . . ."

They turned their attention to the imp who had finally joined him. He had a forlorn look on his face.

"You could come with us, Jaken," Kagome said softly.

"I know but I must fulfill my duties to the heir of the Western Lands," the imp sighed. "And, yes, there is one."

"Really? How?"

"It is best if I do not say," he shook his head. "With Lords Sesshomaru and Inuyasha dead, it's best for no one to go after the new Lord."

"And if you tell us, it could make the new Lord vulnerable," Miroku supplied.

"Exactly."

They fell silent and Kagome returned her attention back to the fire. Myoga had told her once that Inuyasha had been the true heir to the Western Lands. In the event of his death, Sesshomaru inherited them but that had not been the cause of the brothers' hatred for each other. When asked, both Jaken and Myoga shrugged and claimed that only Inuyasha and Sesshomaru truly knew why. Inuyasha's succession ceremony was supposed to have taken place last year. On her seventeenth birthday.

Kagome sighed inwardly. Her birthday. She'd be turning eighteen in seven months, and it'd be bittersweet. Sweet because she'd be in America, making a new start for herself, and hopefully Miroku and Sango would be with her. Bitter because she'd want Inuyasha to be there with her. She held no hope of ever finding his reincarnation, if he even had one. Japan's population had grown proportionately since this era, and she saddened as she thought of everything she'd be leaving behind.

'But it's for the better,' she told herself. 'We all need to get away . . . away from the pain and heartache. If we're not here, it won't be as painful. We'll still remember but we won't hurt as much. And that's all I can hope for.'

She settled into a fitful slumber . . .

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"Are you sure about this?" Mrs. Higurashi stared at the delivery man, her expression a bit shocked.

"Very sure, ma'am," he nodded. "It was found in an old box in my family's home. It'd been there for many, many generations, and was supposed to have been delivered two years ago. We just now found it."

"I see," she murmured.

"We are very sorry for the delay but we do hope that it is enjoyed." He bowed then left. Mrs. Higurashi's eyes widened when she read the note attached to the slender box then smiled.

"I'm sure that it will be. Very sure."

She went into her home and stored the box inside of another that had been marked "For Kagome's Birthday" and she had no doubts that it would be well-received.

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"She wants us to what!"

Kagome cringed at the anger she heard in Kouga's voice but stood her ground. Standing on a branch directly above her was Kagura, the wind sorceress. Around them stood the rest of her group, and everyone watched with baited breath.

"She wants us to help her get rid of Naraku," she repeated.

"No."

"No?" Kagome raised an eyebrow at him.

"No. We're not going to help her. It's obviously a trap set by that bastard."

"We?"

"Yes," he nodded. "I lead now, and my decision is final."

"Is it now? Well, Kouga, I hate to disappoint you but I have decided to help Kagura. I'm not going to waste this one chance to finally get rid of Naraku. In fact, we've all agreed to help her. Especially since time is not on our side."

"We can't trust her!" He all but shouted. In that instant, Kagome wished she had a subduing rosary for the wolf youkai. It had worked to get her way with Inuyasha but this was Kouga. She had to remain calm.

"Maybe not, Kouga, but as I said, I'm not wasting this opportunity. To many have died because of the Shikon no Tama. It ends _now_."

"Kagome . . ."

"No, Kouga. I'm done talking. We're attacking Naraku. Tonight."

She turned and walked away. Kagura joined her as did Sango and Miroku with Kirara, Shippou, Rin, and Jaken. What needed saying had been said. They could wait no longer.

"Thank you, Kagome," the wind sorceress murmured.

"Don't thank me yet," she stated, colder than what she had intended. "Let's just stick to the plan. Got it?"

"Got it."

Kagura pulled out her fan as she picked up her bow and quiver of arrows. Kirara transformed then took the sky, Rin and Shippou on her back. The two children were heading back to Edo, to Kaede, where they would be out of harm's way. The villagers, Kaede, and Kirara would protect them. In the event Naraku went after the children and the village, they'd be whisked to the Bone-Eater's Well and to Kagome's time, the spell already worked out. Her mother would be waiting for them.

As for the rest of their plan, it was simple. Kagura would be the first to approach Naraku as everyone got into position. Then, if he didn't detect them right away, they'd make their appearance one by one and hit him with everything they had. And it would take all that they had to defeat him.

'If only I knew what Kikyou was going to do. She's the only wild card and we haven't seen her since Inuyasha died.'

It couldn't be helped, however. They had to make their stand, even if it meant making a deal with one of Naraku's incarnations.

'But she wants to be free from him and I can't blame her for wanting her freedom.'

"Are we ready?"

"Hai," came the chorused replies.

"Let's get it over with."

With a snap of her fingers, they loped into a run, parting to two sides. The ground shook under their feet, and Uhn and Ah appeared next to them. Kagome grabbed a hold of the reigns and pulled herself up. Sango, Miroku, and Kagura followed suit. Jaken and perched himself on Uhn's head. Once everyone was on, the two-headed dragon took to the sky.

'Inuyasha, Sesshomaru . . . wherever you are, please lend us your strength. We're going to need it.'

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Kouga panted as he tried to keep up with the two-headed dragon. They were heading straight for a trap. He just knew it but he didn't have the stamina, or the jewel shards, to keep up. They had been given to Kagome after he had slain Inuyasha. It was the least he could do to make her feel better but he began to regret it now.

"Dammit," he growled. "I won't get there in time."

"Going somewhere?" a female voice inquired.

He came to a quick stop, sniffing and growling. It was _her_. The one who bore only a marginally similar scent to Kagome's but otherwise carried the scent of clay and bones.

"What do you want?" Kouga snarled.

"To keep you away from my reincarnation," she stated coldly. "Naraku's time has come, just like Kagome's time here has come. You cannot stop her. In fact, you must not stop her."

"But she's walking into a trap!" he argued.

"For once, she is not. It is Naraku who will be ensnared. Just stay out of the way, Kouga, if all you're going to do is stop her."

"I'd like to see you make me!"

He started to lunge for her when every part of his body froze. The undead priestess smirked, chilling his blood.

"I will not allow you to interfere anymore, Kouga. Either you can help or you can stay here and live with the knowledge and shame that a young human female had more courage than what you did to take on the most hated hanyou our time has ever seen. The choice is yours."

The undead priestess turned and vanished from his sight. Kouga growled as he struggled to free himself from her spell. It just wasn't turning out to be his day.

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Kagome paused for a moment to catch her breath. They had taken Naraku by surprise, something that had surprised yet pleased her. However, she had not let her guard down, not for a single moment. No one had. They couldn't afford to. Yet, he had begun to weaken. She saw it in his aura. It worked in their favour that she kept all of their shards of the Shikon shards purified, kept herself from completely hating the hanyou whom she had battled for nearly three years, and that had begun to purify the shards that Naraku possessed.

'I just need a few more arrows,' she thought as she reached for her last one. 'I can take him down.'

"Need a hand?"

"That depends," she replied tartly. "Exactly how do you plan on assisting us, Kikyou?"

"Here . . ." A quiver filled with arrows suddenly rested against her leg. "I don't think that you'll need them, though. Just promise me one thing, Kagome."

"And what would that be?"

"Promise me that, in another life, you'll find Inuyasha once again and heal the wounds of his soul."

"Huh?"

A soft blue glow filled her vision and a warming sensation washed over her. For a long time, she hadn't felt whole, that a small piece of her was missing. She'd always known that Kikyou had possessed that part of her, had clung to that piece so that she might destroy Inuyasha. Kikyou had now given it back.

"_Now is the time, Kagome. We are one once more and Naraku doesn't stand a chance. I'll show you the way. And thank you . . . Thank you for loving Inuyasha for what he was and not what he could have been."_

The souls that Kikyou had kept within her over the years swarmed around Naraku, destroying his poisonous insects in the process. Kanna had been knocked unconscious by her sister, Kagura, and Kohaku . . . he also lay on the ground, Miroku standing over him. A few of them stayed close to the combatants, like they were shields or something. The rest cleared a path. Kagome notched an arrow.

'And I have back up arrows in case I need them.'

She let the arrow loose . . .

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"Happy birthday to you . . . Happy birthday to you . . . Happy birthday, dear Kagome . . . Happy birthday to you . . ."

The song had been sung, the candles blown out, and the cake sliced. Kagome had to admit that her mother had outdone herself in decorating their new home and creating a fantastic birthday feast in the process. She'd forgotten how nice it could be to have a simple celebration.

"Time to open the presents!" Souta called out, causing Kohaku, Rin, and Shippou to cheer out as well. She laughed. Children could be so enthusiastic at times.

"I don't know what they're more excited about," Sango commented. "The cake or the presents."

"Presents," Kagome supplied. "Cake can be had anytime. Presents are for special occasions only."

To that, Sango laughed as well and everyone found a place to sit. One by one, Kagome opened her presents. Jokes flew about some of them, mainly about the clothes from her mother and Sango had given her. Their new home was located in a nice, well-to-do suburb of Philadelphia, and everyone, minus Shippou, would be starting school the next day. Kagome couldn't wait. West Hall sounded like a nice place.

"One more present, Kagome!" Souta announced. Kohaku brought the box over and offered her a smile, one that she returned warmly.

"Look at the tag," her mother instructed. Kagome did so and gasped. Fingers trembling, she tore the paper off and lifted the lid. Inside sat a pair of blue fans. Tenderly she lifted them out and revealed a set of blue hair combs. The combs rested on blue silk. After setting the combs next to the fans, she pulled the fabric out, unveiling a twelve-layered kimono in four different shades of blue. There were gasps coming from every person in the room.

"Kagome, that is so beautiful," Sango breathed.

"Who is it from?"

"Inuyasha," she whispered. "It's from Inuyasha."


	5. Of Cars and RVs

Overly thorough and efficient. That's how Ryan sometimes described his wife. She never hesitated to make the lists, plan the routes, do the shopping, and fine tune the details that needed it. Yet she most often remained calm and relaxed when planning family outings and vacations, and always, always let the events flow accordingly. Deviations from the planned path led to adventure and adventure had become a key ingredient to their lives. Their first vacation with their sons had convinced him . . . Women live for making plans and this vacation would be no exception.

"Where are you guys going again?" Robert inquired.

"Nowhere and everywhere," he replied, taking a sip of lemonade. The two men sat on the porch of Ryan's Philadelphia home and watched as their children – Sesshomaru, Ryan, Inuyasha, and Anna O'Connell; Georgia and Wesley Johnson – with the dogs played in the front yard. Robert had stopped by with his with children while "the women" went shopping. "Torie's still trying decide if we should stop in California or head to Oregon. But we're definitely heading to Cali."

"Man, she's really getting into the whole family vacation thing, isn't she?" he chuckled.

"Yeah . . . I'm dreading the trips to China and Europe," he winked.

"I bet . . . So . . . are the kids excited?"

"Yeah," Ryan nodded, his eyes on the youngsters in question. "Torie's bought new clothes for them and they keep asking us when we're leaving. The countdown to the Fourth has begun."

Robert gave a single nod, his eyes on the children as well. The man had been quiet since he and Val had stopped by. Unusually quiet. Ryan didn't even need to see his friend to know something was on his mind. They had been friends since he'd moved to Philadelphia several years before and Ryan had become very adept at reading body language and the silent signals that indicated someone's mood. Torie had been, and still was, his practice.

"What is it?"

"Hmm?"

"What is it, this thing that's bothering you?" Ryan repeated, tearing his gaze away from the children to Robert. "And don't tell me nothing because I've known you far too long to believe it."

Robert stared at him for a moment then shook his head.

"You're too damn observant," he mock complained. "You and Torie both. No wonder you're so good together."

Ryan merely smiled and waited. One thing the two men held in common was pride. They didn't like to say anything about what bothered them, even when asked. But Ryan knew Robert _needed_ to say what was bothering him. It helped him to sort things out and, until he did, he was not his usual cheerful and annoying self.

"Val's pregnant," Robert murmured. "We found out last week when she went in to find out about having her tubes tied."

"I see . . . I take it you've both agreed to not terminate the pregnancy?"

"Yeah," Robert nodded. "She just has to go on maternity leave in three weeks."

"Ouch . . ."

"Yeah . . . The hospital isn't going to be too happy about it but I'm not going through what we did with Wesley again. That was a nightmare. I thought I was going to lose both of them."

"Mmm . . ."

Ryan remembered all too well the complications Val had had when she'd been pregnant with the boy. He was, however, happy to hear that there'd be a third Johnson child on the way but he also knew that the pregnancy left his friends with a dilemma. They lived in a three bedroom house near Society Hill and paid twice in rent than what their house was actually worth. It barely had any room for the antiques that Val had collected, and they weren't allowed to expand the house in anyway. Things were not looking their way. Still, something had to be done. Five people could not live in that house and survive.

'They need a bigger house . . . And I think I know just the place . . .'

"I'll talk to Torie," he stated.

"About what?"

"About getting you guys a new place to live. Our old five bedroom house is still vacant . . . I'm sure we can come up with some kind of an arrangement."

"You don't have to . . ." Robert began.

"Nonsense," Ryan waved his hand. "You need a bigger place and we have one for rent. You guys always liked it and I'm pretty sure Torie would rather see you and Val have it than some strangers. Besides, you guys belong _here_. In _our_ neighborhood."

"I'll talk to Val about," Robert sighed. They returned their attention back to their children once more. For a few moments, the only sounds they heard were the laughter and squeals of six hyper children, the faint rustle of leaves every so often, and the occasional car driving by.

"Man, I really envy you," he finally stated. "An RV trip cross-country . . . I'd like to do that with my wife and children someday."

"Beats having four kids in a van during that time," Ryan chuckled. "But then Torie wanted the RV for vacations like this. She told me she'd decided that before she even moved here."

"She did?"

"Mm-hmm," he nodded. "After she took that mad dash from Michigan to California. From Chicago to Pasadena in an RV. And back again."

"Women live for planning, don't they?"

"Sure seems like it," Ryan agreed. "But I wouldn't have any other woman, Robert. Without Torie, I wouldn't have what I've got and I wouldn't be where I'm at today."

"On your way to being insanely rich?" Robert teased.

"Happily in love with a beautiful woman and having four beautiful children," he replied. He knew Robert was joking but he had to reply to that honestly. Robert understood. Hell, if the tables had been reversed, he'd have made the same joke.

"Hehe, don't I know it. Still, you can't deny that Torie's been your good luck charm, Ry. You're finally living your dreams because of her and I'm happy for you. A little jealous but I am happy for you. You deserve it. Both of you. I just don't know how you do it."

To that, Ryan started chuckling. He illustrated books and worked for a local animation company, had started that a month after he began dating Torie nearly five years ago. She wrote novels and screenplays and whatever else tickled her fancy, and she played an active part in the local education system. Torie had also opened two restaurants – one being a Japanese steakhouse, the other being a bar – and a Japanese botanical garden that specialized in massage therapy. Last year, they had opened a martial arts school and an art school, and had acquired four homes. Three of them were in the neighborhood – they had renovated the five story house that they now resided in – and the fourth was roughly thirty-five miles north of Philadelphia. Now his wife talked about opening a costume shop. Where they'd find the time for that, he didn't know. As it stood, he didn't know where they found the time to maintain five homes and five businesses while they raised four well-adjusted children.

"When I figure it out, I'll let you know."

"Please do," Robert chuckled. "I want the great balancing act, too."

"You need one more kid for that, as well as some homes and businesses of your own," Ryan winked.

"No! Three kids will be enough, thank you very much!"

"Spoilsport."

"Damn straight."

This brought another round of laughter from the two men.

"I feel like such a housewife . . . where did those two get off to anyway?"

"Don't know," Robert shrugged. "They should be back at any moment."

"Yeah . . ."

"Well," Robert stood up and stretched a little, "let's herd the kids to the garage. I wanna take a look at that RV before you guys take off in it."

"Yes, Master," Ryan smirked.

"You've been around Torie too long," his friend stated

"Not long enough, my friend. Not long enough."

Herding the children to the garage had not been an easy task. As is the wont of children, they wanted to continue running around and playing. The dogs didn't help, either. Ryan had to eventually grab his youngest two and carry them, which helped to get the rest of them in line.

"Go play in the RV," he told them as he set Inuyasha and Anna down. The kids cheered and ran for the side door.

"Is that a good idea?" Robert inquired as Sesshomaru let the rest in.

"If they're in the RV, we know where they're at," he pointed out. "Besides, Torie's let them play in it since she brought it out of storage. We've even slept in it."

"Ah . . . Getting them all the more excited about going cross-country. Man, you and Torie are not going to survive until the Fourth."

"Yeah, we will," Ryan smirked. "They may be excited but they're still on their best behaviour."

"Okay, now I'm really jealous . . . but I'll get over it. Pop the hood for me, will you?"

"Sure thing."

He opened the driver's side door and pulled the lever, releasing the hood. In the back, he could hear the children laughing and playing some strange game that Sesshomaru had invented. He smiled as he listened. If his oldest child's behaviour would be any indication, the road trip to California promised to be fun and interesting.

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Inuyasha sat patiently as his mother buckled him in the backseat of her dark green Grand Cherokee Laredo. He only knew what the vehicle was called because of his father and the 'uncles' he saw on a regular basis. However, he didn't really care what it was called. It could have been his father's truck, his mother's little red car, or the family van for all he cared. His brothers and sister weren't coming with him. He had his mother all to himself, if only for a short while.

"All set, baby?"

He nodded, causing his mother to smile. She kissed his forehead then brushed his hair back some. Then she winked.

"Let's go then."

She closed the door then climbed in the front. The vehicle hummed to life and they were pulling out of the yard. His father stood in front of the house, his sister balanced on his hip and his brothers wrestling around. Inuyasha gave a small wave to his dad, which was returned, then his mother took off.

"Where're we going, Mommy?"

"To the doctor, baby. It's time for your yearly check up," she replied.

"He isn't going to poke me again, is he?" Inuyasha frowned.

"I'm afraid it's a possibility, Inuyasha. Don't want you kids getting sick while we're on the road. That wouldn't be fun," she stated.

"We'd have to turn around, wouldn't we?"

"Yes, we would." She glanced at him through the rearview mirror and smiled again. "After we see the doctor, we'll get some lunch then do some shopping. Okay?"

"Mm-hmm " he flashed her a cheesy grin, gaining another smile and a chuckle from her.

"What a ham," he heard her murmur. He then looked out the window as they went.

In the summer, they normally walked everywhere, unless it rained. His parents often dragged out the double stroller and the red wagon, and they'd go. His father would pull the wagon while his mother would, as she put it, man the stroller. They saw many things that way and had time to stop to do activities along the way. When he'd asked what the RV trip would be like, that's how his parents had explained it. It had only increased his excitement, as well as his siblings', and they were already extremely excited.

'One more week and we'll be on our way to see Grandma and Grandpa, and Nanna and Ji-chan.'

Inuyasha didn't really mind the thought of spending a lot of time in the RV. They'd spent a lot of time in the family van, taking it on trips to Michigan and New York or, in the winter, to go see the Christmas lights. His mother often read to them on those long trips, at least when she wasn't driving. When his father wasn't driving, he drew them pictures, creating story after story. After the sun would go down, his parents would either sing to them or turn the radio on. It had always been like that when they took the van. They never had to ask, "Are we there?" They were always occupied.

"Here we are " his mother announced, parking the SUV. Inuyasha groaned. He hated going to the doctor. He always got poked with needles, something his brothers relished tormenting him about, especially since they knew he feared and hated them.

"Hey now," she chided, gently picking him up. "It isn't going to be that bad. We'll be out before you know it."

He still clung to her like some evil monster had been and was still after him.

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Torie kissed Inuyasha's forehead as she carried him into the doctor's office. Out of her sons, he was the quietest and the shyest. The moment she curled up with a book, he'd be right there, snuggling and eventually bringing Sesshomaru, Little Ryan, and Anna to her lap as well. It had become a common complaint of her husband that the children got to cuddle with her more than what he did. The children always giggled at that.

'My little artist,' she thought lovingly, signing him in for his appointment. 'Taking after his father, no doubt.'

For Christmas last year, Inuyasha had received some art sets from her mother, stepmother, and mother-in-law. It had been an instant love for him and she'd had to restock his supplies just so he'd leave Ryan's materials alone. Crayons, coloured pencils, markers, paint . . . he used it however he could, and it had only enhanced the skills he'd been displaying since last summer. She could honestly say Ryan drawing stories for them in the van had been Inuyasha's first drawing school.

'One who plays Chess and other intellectually stimulating games, one who loves sports, and one who loves art and the spoken word,' she smiled as they waited. 'Makes me wonder what Anna's gonna be like when she gets older.'

She found a chair to sit in, her youngest son cradled in her arms. Humming softly, Torie picked up a parenting magazine.

"You gonna help me pack up the RV tonight?"

"Mm-hmm," he nodded. She kissed his forehead and he looked up.

"Good. 'cause I need some help picking out some books to take with us." She nuzzled him.

"And some movies?"

"And some movies," she chuckled. "Do you want to take some sketchpads with us?"

"Yeah . . ."

"All right . . . we'll buy some before we go home. But you're not to touch them until we go on vacation, understood?" At his sullen nod, she continued. "Good. Think your brothers and sister might like something, too?"

He nodded again, vigourously. It didn't bother her too much that he hardly spoke. Being the youngest of three boys, he'd somehow gotten it into his head to speak when he felt the need to. On occasion, he'd chatter her ear off like any four-year-old would but he also had competition for his parents' attention. Inuyasha also happened to be non-competitive by nature, his older brothers competing more with each other than bothering with him. Still, she'd like it if he'd speak up a little more often than what he did.

"Not gonna talk to me today?" She stuck her lower lip out as far as she could, causing him to giggle. Several people glanced at them, some giving her a disapproving look. Torie ignored them and continued to make faces at her son until the nurse called for them.

"You're silly," he told her as she stood up.

"You made me that way."

"Nuh-uh."

"Uh-huh . . . Hey, Carole."

The appointment went smoothly enough, even when Inuyasha received his shots, then they were gone. After lunch at Tsukiyo, the Japanese steakhouse she and Ryan owned, and a little shopping, they arrived home. Ryan sat on the front porch, waiting for them, and he stood as she approached, bags on one arm and Inuyasha balanced on her hip. The rest of their children were nowhere in sight.

"How'd it go?" Ryan inquired, taking the four-year-old from her.

"He's healthy," she winked. "Where are the kids? Inuyasha and I picked some stuff out for them, and we need to get the RV packed."

"We still have a week left before we leave, Torie . . ."

"It's better to get as much as we can in so we're not scrambling the day before." Having said that, she brushed her lips against his. His free arm snaked around her waist.

"I hate it when you have a point," Ryan murmured, nuzzling her nose with his.

"But you love it when things run smoothly."

"Indeed I do."

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"Here's the itinerary and our cell numbers . . ."

"Like we really need those," Robert joked.

"Oh hush," Ryan admonished. "Stop picking on my wife."

"Yes sir "

"Nut," he muttered.

"Someone has to be," Robert smirked. "Anyway, thanks . . ."

"For what? You and Val are the ones house-sitting for us. It should be us thanking you," Ryan frowned.

"Not for this . . . For what you're doing for us. You guys don't have to." They looked over to where their wives were, talking and ushering children either into the RV or out. "And I mean it when I say have fun on your vacation. Maybe one day we can plan a dual family vacation together."

"Yeah . . . on the road . . . the wives to torment us in anyway that they can . . . seven screaming and hyper-active children . . . Let's do it next summer "

Robert choked on his laughter. "You, my good friend, are something else."

"Between you and Torie, I can honestly say I've learned from the best."

"I bet . . . And it looks like you better get going before your kids drive off without you." Robert pointed to Anna in the driver's seat.

"Kids . . ." They shook hands briefly. "I guess we'd better get going then. We'll see you in three weeks."

"Yep. We'll be sure that the house will be demolished for you."

"Ha ha," Ryan said dryly. He strode over to the RV as his wife embraced her friend, and Val led her two children away. A few goodbyes later, they were on the road, westbound on I-76 towards Ohio. There they'd be visiting a long-time friend of Torie's then head north on I-75 until it hit US 23. From 23, they'd make their way towards I-96, which would take them into Grand Rapids, and they'd hit US 131 there. Torie had family in Michigan and they were staying a few days so they could attend a family reunion. After that, they were making their way towards San Antonio then to Colorado Springs. The idea was to soak up the time together as a family and see many of the historic sites, like the Alamo and the Grand Canyon as well as friends they had scattered across the country. They were even taking the kids and spending a few days at Disneyland. He and Torie would take turns driving and entertaining the children. Books, movies, CDs, sketchpads, board and card games, and Torie's guitar had been brought along while the gaming systems had been left at home. That had actually been the chidren's choice, not his or Torie's.

'Kids have a funny way of surprising you, especially when you least expect it,' he thought as he listened to the squeals and giggles as they played the same, strange game that Sesshomaru had invented. 'As long as they're occupied.'

Before they knew it, the first seven days had come and gone, the drive being fairly uneventful. Torie had made sure that the movies and activities consisted of favourites and were rotated, making sure that their children never tired of them. If they did, there were always stores and attractions along the way. As he drove, he cast a glance at his wife then frowned at how pale she looked.

"Do we need to stop?" he inquired softly.

"Yeah," Torie breathed. "This is getting to me."

He kept an eye out for any sign of where the next rest area or exit might be. Torie couldn't be kept in a vehicle for long periods of time. Trips to Michigan and back, she could handle but not the prolonged exposure. And she loved driving. That fact had always bugged him for some reason.

A few miles later they were pulling into a Denny's and getting out. While they had stocked their refrigerator in Michigan, what they had was more for snacking, and cold breakfasts and lunches. Going to the family restaurants allowed them to stretch their legs and gave Torie the breathing room that she needed. The kids, specifically Sesshomaru and Little Ryan, jumped around as Ryan locked the RV up.

"I want a cheeseburger!"

"I want fries!"

"You'd think we didn't feed them with the way they're acting," Torie chuckled. Inuyasha had attached himself to her leg in the manner of all shy four-year-olds. Anna, she had balanced on her hip while Sesshomaru and Little Ryan continued to jump around and tried playing tag while calling out what they wanted to eat.

"Of course we don't," Ryan quipped. "Why would we do a silly thing like that?"

"Because you love us!"

"Yeah!"

Their eyes met, a smile tugging at his lips. Then Torie shrugged, her smile releasing his.

"Can't beat that logic," she chuckled as she led the kids inside. They were seated immediately, and Torie took Anna into the ladies' room. Ryan took the opportunity to re-situate the boys. Specifically, Little Ryan and Sesshomaru, both boys having decided they wanted to try wrestling while waiting for the waitress. Inuyasha had busied himself with colouring. The waitress had just brought the booster chair for Anna when Torie came back with the toddler.

"This is different," she commented. "Wrestling again?"

"Yep."

"Are you folks ready to order?"

They placed their order - cheeseburger and fries for Sesshomaru and Little Ryan, chicken strips for Anna, a grilled cheese sandwich for Inuyasha, and steak and potatoes for them; Sprites for the children while they drank coffee and Coca-Cola - and kept their children entertained as they waited. Their food came twenty minutes later. Ryan kept an eye on Inuyasha the entire time, the boy's sudden quiet and subdued bothering him. After they had finished and paid the bill, they tucked the children in – the boys dressed in shorts and t-shirts and Anna in a light nightgown – and were back on the road.

"Feeling better now, babe?"

"Yeah . . . I'll check on the kids in about half an hour," she murmured, fussing half-heartedly over the map.

"Something bothering you?" He glanced at her, noting the concern reflecting in her eyes.

"He's been quiet today. Too quiet. I don't like it."

"I know . . . Think he might be coming down with something?"

"Don't know," she shook her head. "Could be he's like me and can't be cooped up like this for too long."

"Could be . . ."

Her cell phone chose to ring at that moment. Torie reached over and answered it.

"Hello? . . . Oh, hi, Aunt Kagura . . . yeah . . . we're almost to San Antone . . . uh-huh . . .You're where? . . . I see . . . Sure . . . Yeah . . . It's no problem. Uh-huh, I'm sure . . . Hang on. Let me check the map real quick. Never go home without one . . ." The paper rustled as she flipped through the atlas. "I'd say we're about fifteen, twenty minutes away . . . Uh-huh . . . All right, just let me right this down." She pulled out her DayRunner and began to write. "Uh-huh . . . Right, right. I know how that goes . . . Yeah . . . Okay, we'll see you in about fifteen, twenty minutes then . . . No, it's no problem . . . Yep. . . . Love you, too. Bye."

She turned the phone off then tossed it onto the console. Then she turned the CD player on, switching out the 80s rock CD for some traditional Japanese.

"I take it we're picking up my aunt?" he winked.

"Yeah . . . Next exit. She got stranded at the airport. Can you believe that?"

"Just get me there," he chuckled. The family vacation had just gotten a little more interesting.

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Kagura Shinsei lounged against the window outside the airport's main entryway, a suitcase and two overnight bags at her feet. She kept an eye out for her nephew's RV to pull in to pick her up. As much as she hated to impose upon him on his vacation, Kagura had no choice. The airlines had conveniently forgotten about her rental car reservation and it'd be another day or so before another came in. She simply didn't have the time to wait. Her clients were expecting her at noon in San Antonio the next day.

'Thank goodness I talked to Mitsu and found out about them being here. While they see the sights, I can talk to these people,' she smiled. 'It'll be fun to spend some time with them and the children. I'm so glad things have worked out for them. Especially for Sesshomaru and Inuyasha. I wonder if that's how they were like in the past, before they had started to hate each other.'

Kagura brushed her hair behind her ear. It had taken a few centuries to perfect her human appearance and 'aging', as it were, but she felt it was well worth the effort. She'd lived a long and good life and now she worked for a Tokyo-based international adoption agency, having found a loving husband in Ryan's Uncle Hiroshi. If she hadn't, she didn't know what would have happened to the youkai brothers' reincarnations.

'When the time is right, I'll let their friends know. But not now. Not now.'

Ryan and Torie's RV pulled in front of her at that moment. She picked up her overnight bags and suitcase as Torie opened the passenger door. Immediately, the blonde-haired woman held out a hand. Kagura handed over one of the bags. She knew better than to argue with her.

"This way," Torie winked. "The kids are sleeping, just so you know. You can share the bottom bunk with Anna, if you'd like. That flight from Tokyo had to be rough."

"Hazards of the job, I'm afraid, but at least my airfare is free," she chuckled. Ryan opened the side door to admit them in then he went back to the driver's seat. In a moment, the RV lurched forward and the two women set the bags down and the suitcase. They made their way to the front – how they got an RV that seated four in the cab, Kagura could only guess – and talked quietly about family happenings until a tiny voice croaked out, "Mommy?" Torie and Kagura turned to see Inuyasha in the doorframe, tears filling his amethyst eyes and his lower lip trembling. Before Torie could ask him what was wrong, he'd crawled into her lap and buried his face in her shirt. Huge sobs wracked his tiny, lithe frame. Kagura watched as the boy was cradled in his mother's arms and rocked gently.

"Shhh, it's okay. I'm right here. You're okay now," she soothed, brushing back his hair and hugging him. "What's the matter, baby?"

"I had a bad dream," came the muffled whisper. Kagura barely heard him. "The bad man was after me."

The scene had a touching yet bittersweet quality. It looked like many of the paintings and drawings of mothers holding their children that she had seen over the centuries, and it warmed her heart to see it, especially with the knowledge of what his previous life had been like. Yet it twisted her heart. Inuyasha may have been a hated enemy five hundred years ago but now he was her nephew. Family and she hated to see any member of her family hurting or suffering. Quietly, she stood up. She'd help out however she could, even if it meant she could only perform a single task.

"Do you have any extra blankets, Torie?"

"In one of the drawers under the bed . . . Some fleece ones that I made . . . Second drawer, I think," she replied. Kagura made her way to the back and checked the second drawer. She returned to the front a moment later with a light blue fleece blanket. Carefully, she wrapped it rather loosely around the child. Inuyasha clung tightly to his mother, his eyes closed tight and tears streaming from them.

"How are the kids doing?" Torie inquired after mouthing a 'Thank you' to her.

"Still sleeping. I'm surprised." She sat back down behind Ryan.

"I'm not. He's the quiet one, even when he's having a nightmare," Torie explained. "He doesn't toss about much, just wakes right up, and searches for me or Ryan. The other three, they scream."

"Strange," Kagura murmured. 'Nothing like how he used to be. I'll have to ask them later about the bad man. They've never told their children any stories about how the boogie man would eat them if they didn't behave. At least, not that I'm aware of but I can't see them being that desperate. The kids are very well-behaved, better than most.'

The cab of the RV fell quiet, the only sounds being some traditional Japanese music, Torie's humming, and an occasional sniffle from Inuyasha. He soon fell back asleep, though Torie made no move to return him to the back. If anything, the younger woman had her eyes closed and appeared to be dozing off as well. Kagura chuckled softly. Her niece and great-nephew definitely had the right idea.

"Don't stay up too late driving, Ryan," she murmured. "Your wife will have a fit if you're too tired to enjoy the sites."

"There's a campground about a mile away from San Antonio. We'll be stopping there for the night. What time is your appointment, Aunt Kagura?"

"Noon. I need to be there by eleven thirty to get set up and I should be done by one thirty. After that, I'm free for the day. And thanks again for picking me up. I really appreciate it," she smiled.

"Anything for family. Besides, the kids will love seeing you. They love it when you're around."

"And I love seeing them, too. Good night, Ryan."

"Good night, Aunt Kagura."

She made her way back to the back, got ready for bed, and curled up next to her two-year-old niece . . .

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_Ten years later . . ._

"Excuse me, Mrs. O'Connell?" a timid voice asked. Torie raised her head at the formal use of her name. Usually, students called her that but only when she actually taught at the high school. Her children's friends usually called her Mom, Ms C, or Torie, something her neighbors referred to her as as well. She wasn't one for a lot of unnecessary formality.

In front of her stood a light brown-haired woman wearing a green dress. Next to her was a huge bulk of a man wearing a white baseball cap, red shirt, and grey slacks. They both held Tupperware containers and smiled in a friendly manner.

"I'm Mrs. O'Connell," she replied, setting down her pen. The day had been nice out with the sun shining and no breeze that she had decided to work outside and salvage what little bit of pleasantry that she could. "And you are?"

"My name is Rachel Racer and this is my husband, Richard. Our family recently moved here and we thought we'd go around and introduce ourselves to the neighborhood."

"Rachel Racer? Any relation to Greg and Trixie Racer?"

"Yes," she sighed. "Greg is my son and Trixie my daughter-in-law. And, before you say anything, I'd like to apologize for their and my grandson's behaviours earlier today. They were completely uncalled for. How is your son doing?"

"Good," she smiled. Already she liked this couple. Not say she didn't like it if people challenged her when it came to her children. Far from it. It kept people honest and taught responsibility for one's actions, as far as she was concerned, but they also had to be prepared for her to challenge them as well. It didn't work one way. To her, hearing this woman apologize for unruly and uncalled-for behaviour meant that at least someone had her head on straight. "He's inside right now, fixing a late lunch. Would you like to come in and join us?"

"We'd love to," Rachel nodded. "Thank you, Mrs. O'Connell. I hope your children like cookies. We've been giving them out in small containers to everyone."

"My kids do," Torie said, picking up her pen and notebook. She then got to her feet. "But the child inside can't have them." At the questioning look, she quickly added, "He's a diabetic. We have to watch the amount of sugar he takes in and how often. He could end up in the hospital if we're not careful. And please . . . call me Torie."

"I see . . . Thank you, Torie."

The three of them headed for the door. Mr. Racer chose that moment to speak up.

"I love the RV you have in your yard," he beamed. "We used to have one somewhat like it, back when our boys were little. Excellent company, Ford is. It's a fine machine. How often do you use it?"

"Every summer, usually to go to the Renaissance Festivals here and in Michigan, and to visit our families in Michigan and California," she replied. "In fact, let me tell you about the vacation we took ten years ago . . .

El Fin


	6. High School Days and Troubles

If there was anything that the O'Connell clan could agree on it was mornings were always hectic. Alarm clocks rang at various times, the dogs barked and whined to be let out then back in, and everyone rushed around like mad to get showered and dressed, to grab work and school supplies, and to eat breakfast before rushing out the door to get to work and to school on time. Except for Torie O'Connell. She stayed home to work, the benefits of being a professional writer, the manager of the successful all-girl rock band, the Misfits, an owner and part-owner of six small businesses, home owner of five houses, and part time educator. Cup of herbal tea in hand, she sat down at her desk, and pulled out her pen and paper to write. Fortunately for her, the Misfits were taking a break and she'd hired more than competent managers to keep an eye on the stores.

To say that the house had become quiet since her husband and children had left would have been untrue. Ten minutes after they had left and she began her work, Torie got back up, hooked herself up to the hands-free phone, and turned the stereo on. Living with a husband, four children, six dogs, and seven cats made it relatively easy to work amid distraction. As the stereo crooned out _Manic Monday_ by the Bangles, Torie set to work, humming and singing along. The day had had such a promising start.

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"Good morning, class!"

"Good morning, Mrs. Thomason!"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes as the class spoke as one, like they were first-graders instead of freshman in high school. Or was it more like Harry Potter's first flying class? He couldn't tell but he also couldn't complain too much about the composition teacher. She presented a challenge to him when his English teachers in middle school hadn't. He could still Sesshomaru talking about her and the way she taught. And so far . . . Sesshomaru had been right.

"Before we begin today's lessons, I have a couple of announcements to make. First, there'll be an assembly in the auditorium at two. Student council representatives and class officers will be nominated at that time so all freshmen are required to attend. Second, we have a new student joining us today. Catherine . . ."

At the mention of her name, a chestnut-haired girl stepped to the center of the room, her doe eyes taking in everything _and_ everyone. With her matching green skirt and sweater-vest, green head-band, white blouse, and all out prim and proper appearance, Inuyasha had a single word to describe her: preppy. He also surmised that she had rich parents or, at the very least, extremely popular parents. Her "I'm-superior-you're-inferior" glance over the room indicated as much and he made a mental note to stay away from her. Other than his older brothers' friends, he didn't get along too well with preps and jocks. People like them didn't like people like him and he'd long since figured it had to do with freedom of expression. Their parents wanted them to be a certain way and they were bound to be that way. His parents just wanted him to be himself and that allowed him certain freedoms when it came to how he dressed, and what activities and studies he engaged in. Inuyasha slouched in his chair, doodling idly on his book cover as Mrs. Thomason continued.

"This is Catherine Racer. Her family just moved here from Farmington Hill, Michigan, so please take the time to make her feel welcome. Show her around and help her get acquainted with the school. Catherine, please take a seat . . ."

Inuyasha fought back a sigh as the click-clacking of Catherine's shoes made their way towards the empty desk next to him then stopping as she sat down. Hopefully she'd be one of the quiet preps and not bother him. He hated to be bothered, especially when it felt like he was light-years ahead of the rest of the students.

"Now open your books to page forty-five. Today, we'll be looking at sentence structure and the _proper_ way to diagram sentences . . . Catherine, just share a book with someone today . . . Inuyasha, could you please help her? Thank you . . ."

Catherine scooted closer to him as Mrs. Thomason's voice droned on. The rest of the hour flew by. Before the class had ended, Inuyasha had walked up to the teacher's desk and turned in the day's assignment and then some. Mrs. Thomason laughed as she took the papers from him.

"I'm going to have start assigning you extra, Inuyasha, like I did your older brother. I can't keep up with you!" she exclaimed. "Have you considered becoming an Honors student?"

"Not really . . . I don't even know if I'm going to take the next semester's English class . . . Depends on if it's interesting or not."

"Have your mom teach you instead?" she winked. "Well, just think about it. You don't have to go with the entire Honors program, just certain classes. I think you're more than qualified. If you're interested, I'll be more than happy to speak for you to the Honors director." She handed him some papers as the bell rang, and everyone got up to leave. Inuyasha ran back to his desk and saw Catherine still working on the problem. He made a split decision.

"You can borrow my book for tonight. Just bring it back with you tomorrow, okay?"

Catherine nodded, her eyes wide with surprise. Inuyasha headed out, catching up with his girlfriend, Trysten, a girl with short, kinky blonde hair and cobalt-grey eyes. Her face had been powdered all white, and black and grey eye-shadow surrounded her eyes. They wore the same shirts: black tees claiming in bold white letters that they were Hogwarts drop-outs. He noticed that she wore a long, flowing black skirt, instead of black jeans, like what he wore, and he smiled.

"Making it through English?" she inquired, her hand locking with his and she winked. He had started to reply when a very powerful shove violently separated him from Trysten and sent him stumbling towards the door of someone's locker . . .

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Torie glanced at her watch as the phone rang then she frowned. 'Something's not right,' she thought as she pushed on a button the receiver.

"Hello, O'Connell residence. Torie speaking."

"_Hello, Mrs. O'Connell. This is Mrs. Williams at West Hall High . . ."_

"Ah, Mrs. Williams," she greeted, smiling a little. "What's happened?" The school hardly ever called her home within the first hour of classes starting. Not unless Inuyasha had something he shouldn't have, like a candy bar or a soda, or if Anna had an extreme asthma attack.

"_You never were one to mess around, Torie . . ."_

"Not when it comes to my children, Denise. What's happened? Is everything okay?"

"_It appears that Inuyasha and Ryan were involved in some kind of an altercation with some new students. One of them allegedly shoved Inuyasha into an open locker door and Ryan saw it, starting the fight immediately after. We're not doubting the part of Inuyasha hitting the open locker door. In fact, that's why we're calling you. We need you to come and take Inuyasha to the ER. The nurse thinks he may need stitches but we have no one to take him. Jeff's still on medical leave,"_ she explained.

"I'll be there in fifteen," Torie replied, slipping on her sandals and grabbing her keys. Tossing the phone on the table and picking up her cell, she headed out, dialing her husband's work number as she went.

As she had told Denise Williams, Torie arrived at the high school in fifteen minutes. She parked her little Ford Tempo in front of an unusual but sleek-looking sports car and dashed into the building, a torrent of emotions washing over her. Fear and worry for her youngest son – living with a diabetic wasn't always easy – and anger. Anger at the new students for shoving her baby into a locker door and anger at her other son for starting a fight.

'He knows better,' she thought, entering the office. Another couple, a younger-looking one at that, stood at the front desk, their expressions echoing the same anger that she felt, but she paid no attention to them. Instead, she rushed by them, heading directly for the nurse's office. Before she could enter, the principal, a Mr. Dean Stanton, flagged her down.

"Mrs. O'Connell . . ."

"What is it, Mr. Stanton? I need to get to my son."

"I know," he replied. "And I'll talk with you later about Ryan. Right now, I want you to stop and take a deep breath before you go in there. I know you. You're worried, probably running on very little sleep as it is, and you're liable to break down if you don't take that deep breath."

For a moment, she just glared at him, his words painfully true. She _was_ on the verge of breaking down. She just didn't know entirely why. Grudgingly, she inhaled slowly then exhaled, some of her tension slowly leaving.

"You're welcome," he winked. "Now to deal with the Racers."

He moved away and Torie entered the nurse's office. What she saw fueled her anger even more.

Inuyasha sat by the desk, both hands holding bandages over his nose and his left cheek. Several gauze pads soaked with blood were in the trash can. He fought valiantly not to cry – she saw it in the way his eyes shimmered. The nurse looked up when she entered and offered her a weak smile.

"I think we got most of the bleeding to stop, Mrs. O'Connell," she began, "but I'd rather not take any chances, especially with him having diabetes."

"How bad is it?" she inquired.

Carefully, her son lowered his hands and Torie flinched. A thin gash ran from the top of his nose to underneath his left eye. The bleeding, for the most part, had stopped but it still oozed.

"Here," the nurse handed Inuyasha some more gauze. The teen automatically threw the old ones away and applied the new. He still looked miserable.

"Thanks for calling me," Torie stated, holding her arm out to Inuyasha. "I better get him to the ER. Just to be on the safe side. Looks like it needs stitches anyway."

"Of course," the nurse smiled knowingly. "I'll talk with you later, Torie."

She just nodded as she led Inuyasha into the main office. The couple from before had disappeared. She heard raised voices coming from Dean's office but, as of the moment, they weren't any of her concern. Denise handed her the sign-out sheet, which she immediately filled out. Then she and here son were out the door and on their way to the ER.

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Sesshomaru sat down at the lunch table and sighed. The entire senior class buzzed with the news that two of the new seniors, Danielle and Greg Racer, had started a fight with two freshmen. And, according to the buzz, the two freshmen had been his brothers, Ryan and Inuyasha.

'Mother's probably burning a fuse over this,' he thought as he stared at his sandwich. If rumour was to be believed, Inuyasha wouldn't be in trouble. He'd been shoved into an open locker door and had to be taken to the nurse's office. Ryan, on the other hand, would be – it was said that he threw a punch at Greg.

"Hey, Sessh," a sullen voice greeted. Sesshomaru raised his head as Ryan plopped down in front of him with his tray.

"Rough day?" he inquired lightly, causing the freshman to snort.

"Oh no. Not at all," Ryan jibed. "Only the entire freshman class is cheering because I took on a new student and set him in his place. A senior at that." He paused then sighed. "And all I've been doing is worrying about my little brother."

"What exactly happened?"

"The jerk shoved Inuyasha into an open locker door, and continued to walk on by. He had this smirk on his face, like he'd done it on purpose."

"So you confronted him about it."

"Yeah, and he shoved me, like he was some sort of big shot and he could get away with it. It didn't even matter that he'd hurt someone else. So I punched him."

Sesshomaru chuckled. He'd heard both his mother and his father speak like that many times and hearing Ryan say it in the same manner . . . It'd been spoken like a true O'Connell.

"Mom came and got Inuyasha, he was bleeding that bad. I finally got a hold of her on her cell and found out how he was doing."

"And?" he prompted.

"He's out of school for the day. I have to get his homework assignments and I'm also in trouble," he sighed, "but Mom's calm enough to be objective and hear what I have to say."

Sesshomaru nodded as he listened to his brother. It was as he suspected. Inuyasha bore no blame and Ryan had minimal. As long as he'd admitted to what he'd done, Ryan's punishment would be less severe than what it would have been if he'd denied any involvement.

"Did he need stitches?"

"Yeah but Mom didn't say how many. Anyway, I see Robyn waving at me. I'll see you after school."

His younger brother go up and went to sit with his friends just as his own friends had approached the table. The rest of the lunch hour passed by quietly, and Sesshomaru went to his next class with his girlfriend, Austen, a tall brunette with blue-green eyes. As was his wont, he sat in the front with Austen next to him. They were talking quietly when two students – a guy and a girl– stormed into the room and headed for the back. Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at the one, the male, and hid a smirk. Their appearances told him everything he needed to know. _She_ wore a white blouse, a matching pink sweater-vest and skirt, and loafers. _He_ wore a white shirt, black dress shoes, and a matching blue vest and slacks. Heads held high, they probably had enough pride – and money – to choke a horse or two. What had really grabbed Sesshomaru's eyes was a fist-sized bruise forming around the guy's left eye.

'Nice right hook, little brother. Father would be proud. Mother, too,' he thought as the teacher, a Mr. Kim Jugger, walked into the room, and the rest of the class filed in. Without another thought, he pulled out his Middle-East history book and notepad, ready for the day's lessons.

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'I should've just stayed in bed,' Torie sighed to herself as she gazed hard at the couple in front of her. Greg and Trixie Racer. The parents of the senior who had shoved her youngest son into an open locker door.

Next to her stood her husband, Ryan O'Connell I, but she kept her attention on Greg and Trixie. She couldn't afford to take her eyes from them. Tensions were already reaching the sky between them, and it all centered on the child who bore no blame in the situation at hand.

Torie already knew what had occurred that morning. Inuyasha had told both her and her husband while they were in the ER. Sure, she'd still ask Little Ryan about it when he got him and she'd already meshed out the punishment in her mind. She'd talk to Ryan about when they got a moment alone before the rest of their children got home from school but she was not one to mess around. Breaking school rules had consequences, after all.

An arm wrapped around her shoulder and she relaxed slightly. Ryan always knew what to do to calm her down, even if only for a moment.

Greg and Trixie Racer. She'd heard their names before, from George, her neighbor across the street, and she knew that they were new to the neighborhood. Their entire family had moved with the family of six – his parents, his older brother, his younger brother, and another couple who, according to what he had seen as they moved in, seemed to love working on cars. They were a racing family and had earned a considerable fortune by building custom cars and racing them. Torie had never heard of the clan but then she happened to follow the NASCAR stock car and stock truck racing. This family seemed to be into Formula-1.

'They sounded like such nice people, too,' she mused as she took a deep breath. The time had come for her to finally say something against the barrage of abuse the man in the dark blue suit had hurled against her son. 'Here goes nothing.'

"First of all, Mr. Racer," she began, feeling out the right words that she wanted, "I can assure you that my son is not some thug who constantly beats people up and vandalizes personal property. I know where my children are at at all times. That doesn't mean to say that they don't get into trouble from time to time because they do. They're children, after all. But my children know what we expect from them. If my son tells me he never said anything to your son to warrant being shoved into a locker, I believe him. Besides which, they're in school. Your son should _not_ have shoved my son to begin with, for whatever reason."

"Mrs. O'Connell," his wife started to speak up. Torie held up a hand, cutting her off.

"I'm not finished, Mrs. Racer. I've heard what you've both had to say. Now you'll listen to what _I_ have to say."

The younger woman glared at her but said no more. Torie lowered her hand.

"Thank you. Now, the school has rules. Rules that the faculty has to abide by and that the students have to abide by. Believe me, I know. I've been an educator for many years. I've taught on a full-time basis. Your son _chose_ to shove my son into a locker. Why he did that, I don't know. I can hazard a few guesses but that's what they'd be. Guesses. Your son has to deal with the consequences of his actions, the same as my other son, the one who punched him. That's just the way it is, the way it has been, and the way it shall be. Finally, and this is on a more personal note, I don't ever want to hear you running down a child whom you know nothing about. I'm getting the impression you're judging my son based on his appearance alone and I'm not going to stand for it. Do it again and you _will_ be answering to me. Do I make myself clear?"

"Mrs. O'Connell," Mr. Racer sighed. Torie's eyes narrowed dangerously. That tone. That chastising tone. Dammit, he was thirty-eight and she forty-five! She'd been a parent for fifteen years and had even helped others to take care of their children, including the care of her baby sister. No one took that tone with her. Ever. Not if they knew what was good for them.

"I said do I make myself clear?" she growled softly, punctuating each word slowly. Both Racers blinked, as if they were unused to someone challenging them. Or, if she read them correctly, at least having another parent challenge them.

'Well, I'm not like any parent they've ever met. I believe in my children. They better get used to it. And if they have any common sense, they won't press the issue.'

They stood that way for a few moments, eyes never wavering. Eventually Greg Racer scowled and wrapped an arm around his wife.

"I guess you'll just have to learn the hard way," he stated, steering his wife towards the same white sports car Torie had seen earlier at the school. With a roar and a squeal, the sleek machine pulled out of their driveway then was gone. Torie let out a deep sigh, her husband hugging her close now. And the day had started out so nicely.


	7. Sun and Moon, Day and Night

"Come on in," Torie stated. "Welcome to our humble abode."

Rachel Racer smiled a little at the joke the younger woman made. If the O'Connell matriarch wanted to call a historic, five-story house with a two-car garage and a yard large enough for children to play in _humble_, who was she to argue? Even the inside held a feeling of grandeur. At least, the woodwork and the light fixtures suggested some grandeur. The pictures on the wall were in simple wooden and metallic frames.

"Are these your children?" she inquired as they passed various school pictures.

"Only four of them are mine," Torie replied then pointed to them as they walked by. "Sesshomaru Hakkai, Ryan Michael Evan the Second, Inuyasha Kenshin, and Anna Renee' Lea. The rest are nieces and nephews, siblings and cousins."

"It's quite the family," the Racer matriarch smiled. "Is that why you have such a large house?"

"Kinda . . . most of my family live in Michigan while Ryan's lives in California, Japan, and Ireland . . . The kids' rooms are throughout the second, third, and fourth floors. We have four guest rooms, and the rest have been turned into studios," she explained.

"Studios?"

"Yeah . . . My husband is an illustrator and animator so we have a room for him to work in. My youngest son is following in his footsteps so we have a room set up for him as well. We have a dance and martial arts studio in the basement, a room on the fourth floor for them to practice their instruments, and a place for me and my daughter to sew."

She led them into the living room where a dark-haired youth sat with a sandwich, a handful of cheese crackers, and a glass of milk. Rachel cringed at the long, slender gash that graced his nose and upper left cheek. If he'd been her son, she'd challenge the other child's parents as well. He looked up as they walked in.

"Inuyasha, this is Rachel and Richard Racer . . . Mr. and Mrs. Racer, this is my youngest son, Inuyasha."

"Hi," the boy smiled weakly, almost shyly.

"Hello, Inuyasha," Rachel nodded, smiling back. She'd heard her son ranting as they'd packaged up the cookies. If she were to go by his appearance, she would've had to agree with Speed. Inuyasha, with his black t-shirt and black jeans, and shoulder-length hair, had the appearance of a trouble-maker. But his mannerisms were that of a quiet, quite possibly shy, young man. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay," he shrugged. "A little tired but okay."

"Which is why he needs to eat," his mother supplied. "Have a seat and I'll fix something for us real quick."

Rachel took the other container from her husband as she said, "I'll help you, dear." When the younger woman started to protest, she cut Torie off. "I have no objections to helping out my host or hostess. Besides, I want to see your kitchen in this 'humble' abode of yours," Rachel winked. To that, Torie chuckled.

"Very well then. The kitchen is this way. Mr. Racer, please have a seat anywhere and don't mind when my husband comes back with the dogs. They're an enthusiastic bunch."

Rachel followed Torie as she made her way to the kitchen. She had a thousand questions, it seemed, buzzing around in her mind. Torie had told them that her children were active, but the pictures on the walls had indicated more. Much more.

"Here we are!" Torie announced. Rachel's eyes widened at how immense the kitchen was. She couldn't guess the dimensions of it, but it housed an island stove, a small deep freezer, a wide refrigerator loaded with magnets and artwork, counter space to spare, a walk-in pantry, a dishwasher, and cupboards a plenty. The O'Connell matriarch also had plenty of room to move around in.

"This kitchen," she breathed, "is _huge_."

"Yeah . . . we kind of need it that way," Torie explained, pulling sandwich makings out of the fridge and cupboards. "Makes it easier to have the kids help us when we're cooking."

"You don't have your own cook?"

"Nope. Don't need one," Torie replied. "Ryan and I both know how to cook, have perfected certain recipes that the other doesn't know how to prepare, and we're teaching our children. I mean, I know we can afford to have one and a maid to do the cleaning but then I wouldn't be able to find anything!"

"Speaking of your children . . . are they involved in any school activities?"

"Oh yeah . . . All of them are in the National Honour Society, all participate in the school plays in one way or another. Ryan and I insisted on dance lessons and for them to learn martial arts, which he taught them . . . Sesshomaru is running to be the class president and creative writing club president, is a member of the chess club, golf and soccer teams, runs track, and is on the Forensics team." She paused to pour them a drink. "He's also in the high school jazz band."

"What are his grades like?" Rachel inquired. "And how many instruments does he play?"

"All of the kids play three instruments. Guitar and piano then an instrument of their choice. Sesshomaru plays the clarinet and carries a four point," she answered. "Little Ryan and Inuyasha are in the jazz band and creative writing club as well. But Little Ryan is into sports. Big time into sports. He plays baseball, basketball, football, volleyball . . . He's thinking of joining the Forensics team this year. Plays the alto sax for the jazz band. Likes to be extremely competitive with his older brother, especially academically."

By now, they had made four sandwiches, put the cookies on top of the fridge, and dumped some cheese crackers into a bowl. Torie began to pour some more drinks then proceeded to put everything away. Rachel marveled at her efficiency.

"And Inuyasha?" Rachel prompted.

"Plays the violin, is in the Odyssey of the Mind, works on the yearbook, and takes fencing lessons. Out of all my children, he's the quickest to curl up next to me when I'm reading a book or watching a movie and he's also the shyest. If he really wants to, he can pull off anti-social extremely well. He's the one I really need to be careful with at the beginning of the school year and each semester."

"And why's that?" She picked up a tray. Torie had arranged everything neatly.

"Because I don't want him to fail English," came the reply. "Each year has been the same. 'Mom, English is boring. Mom, why do I have to take this? Mom, I want you to teach me . . .' It's been like that since he was eleven and started middle school."

"What did you do?"

"Had him test out of English each year then home-schooled him on that subject alone. His teachers just couldn't keep his attention or his interest. But his teachers understood, especially since I've worked with them in the past."

"Moms do make the best teachers," she chuckled. "And that leaves Anna . . ."

"Yeah . . . My baby . . . A cheerleader, a swimmer, and an active volleyball and tennis player. She plays the flute for band."

"And they all manage to get good grades?" At Torie's nod, Rachel felt flabbergasted and exclaimed, "How do you keep up? I don't think I could've handle everything, especially with four children so close in age!"

"Ask me that after Anna graduates in five years. I'm not sure I know!"

They both chuckled at that then entered the living room.

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"I can't believe this!" Speed fumed, pacing back and forth in the living room of his new home. "His first day of school, he gets in trouble, and the child responsible isn't even going to be punished! How can his mother be so blind as to what he is!"

"Relax, Speed," his best friend, Sparky, soothed. "She is his mother and all mothers tend to give their children the benefit of the doubt."

"Yeah, I know," he sighed. He plopped into a chair. "I've just never had anyone question my judgment on a person's character. That kid is one of those goth kids, and you know how much trouble they were in Farmington Hills!"

Sparky merely nodded, his expression thoughtful. Speed leaned his head back.

"Mrs. O'Connell is right about one thing, Speed," the red-haired man finally spoke. "Greg _did_ break the school's rules. He shouldn't have shoved the kid into an open locker door. I know you don't want to hear it, but it is the truth."

"I'll talk with him when he gets home," he stated irritably. "Believe me, I'm not happy about this."

"I know . . . What time are your kids going to be home?"

"Not sure," Speed replied. "Greg was talking about trying for football, and Danielle and Catherine were going to see if there were cheerleader try-outs."

"Anything else?" Sparky inquired.

"Not right this moment," he sighed. "I don't want to overburden them after moving here."

"Well, that makes sense. Where are your parents, Speed?"

"Would you believe visiting with the O'Connells? They even took cookies. To 'smooth things' over with them."

"Didn't they take cookies to everyone?"

"Yeah . . . They were packing the containers for the O'Connells when Trixie and I were telling them about what had happened," he replied. "They weren't too happy to hear about it, either."

"Nor should we be," a female voice interjected. Both men looked up to see his parents standing in the door. His mother's lips were tight and her eyes narrowed slightly. Pops had a disapproving scowl on his face. "Greg has a lot to answer for, Speed. What he did was cruel. Flat out cruel."

"Mother," he began, rising to his feet, "Inuyasha is as much to blame as my son is!"

"How?" she retorted heatedly. "That boy has stitches on his _face_, Speed. On his _face_! He could have been blinded in one eye! How can you justify that!"

"She's right, Speed," Pops added as Speed opened his mouth to protest. "You can't justify what Greg has done. Even _if_ Inuyasha _had_ mouthed off to Greg, he had turned away when Greg shoved him. That's not defending, that's attacking."

"Inuyasha is a _trouble-maker_," Speed stated obstinately. "I can tell these things, Mother. Nothing about the boy will get me to change my mind!"

"Even if you're proven wrong?" his mother inquired quietly.

"I'm _never_ wrong about kids like Inuyasha." Before anyone could say anything, he stormed out of the room then out of the house.

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Greg Racer, Jr., stared out the windshield at the traffic before him. Today had not been a good day for him. He and his siblings had started school today in a new city. A city where he hadn't wanted to be in the first place. That alone had been bad enough for him, but, being a bit of a hot-head, he had compounded things by shoving a freshman into a locker door then getting into a fight with the kid's older twin brother. That got him in trouble at school, which meant he was now in trouble with his parents and grandparents.

'Damn, damn, damn,' he thought as traffic slowly inched forward. 'Why did I have to shove that kid? Why'd I have to lie about it? He wasn't doing anything except walking to his next class.'

The fact that the freshman had been rather goth-looking had no bearing on his actions. It had been what spurred his twin sister, Danielle, on, but not him. When he'd been a freshman in high school, it had. He'd wanted to be like his father, after all, and his father had sworn up and down that goth kids were nothing but trouble, had been saying it for as long as Greg could remember. They were the ones who stole and painted graffiti everywhere. Not a single one of them was drug-free. However, when he had started playing football – at his father's insistence – Greg had learned a hard lesson. The graffiti had been done by his teammates and the shoplifting . . . they were more responsible than all of the kids dressed in black. As he got older, he had started sneaking out of the house, and heading for the usual goth hang-outs. And he'd been thankful that his parents had never found out.

'Now I have to do it all over again,' he groused to himself. His brother and sisters had remained silent during the duration of the drive until their street finally came into view. Conversation began between Catherine and Danielle but he ignored them. His parents and grandparents were going to be irate with him as it was. 'Might as well get it over with.'

In a matter of minutes, he had pulled into the driveway of their new home. His parents were waiting on the porch for him. So were his grandparents. His day, he believed, had just gotten worse.

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Inuyasha sighed as he made his way to second hour math. As usual, there was much jostling and crowding in the hallways, much noise as his fellow students laughed and talked with each other. Some cast sympathetic glances towards him but most ignored him. That's how high school life went for him and it suited him just fine. The less he had to do with them, the better.

"Hey, Vash!"

He smiled slightly as he heard Jade's voice call out his nickname. Next to Trysten, Jade was his best friend, someone whom he could confide in. Sometimes it felt like he'd known the dark-haired girl his entire life, though it had only been five years since he'd met her. Jade had a strange penchant, though, for wearing a white baboon costume at least twice a week. When he glanced back at her, he groaned then shook his head. She had it on. Today was going to be one of those days.

"Hey, Jade," he smiled. "Feeling particularly baboon-ish today?"

"Always," she smirked. "How's your head?"

"Okay, I guess," Inuyasha shrugged. He resumed walking to his class. Jade fell into step with him.

"Okay? Dude, you went head first into a locker door!" Jade exclaimed. Inuyasha shook his head.

"It's nothing, Jade. It aches a little bit, but it's nothing."

"If you say so . . ."

"I do," he nodded. He adjusted his beret some then stepped into the classroom, Jade right behind him. For being his least favourite subject, he managed to get through the hour rather well, having minimal homework at the end.

"Man, that class is killer," Jade moaned as they walked to his locker. "How much of the assignment did you get done, Vash?"

"I have ten problems left. Better than what I normally have when class is over," he replied. "Mom will be happy about that."

"That she will," the dark-haired girl agreed then frowned. "What's that?"

Seeing what she had referred to, Inuyasha grabbed a piece of paper that had been taped to his locker. He unfolded it and read it before crumpling the note into a ball, and shoving it into his pocket. Jade gave him a questioning look.

"It's nothing," he replied hastily. "I'll tell you later."

"Inuyasha . . ."

He paused for a moment. His hands were shaking, and he had to get them to stop. Jade's hand rested on his shoulder.

"I'm all right, Jade," he murmured, slowly opening his locker door. He duly tried ignoring the dull ache and dizziness that had begun to assault his head.

"I know," Jade stated softly. "Just check it, okay? The last thing you need to get shipped out again."

"Okay, okay," Inuyasha growled, twisting his wrist slightly to check his glucometer. It had become a rather semi-permanent attachment of his the year he had turned ten, and he'd hated it then. Still hated it but there had been no getting around not wearing it. He had to check his sugar every hour on the hour and this had been the solution. Exhaling softly, Inuyasha reached into a lunch bag, retrieving a cheese and beef stick combo pack, and an eight ounce orange juice. Some days he just really hated his life.

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Greg cast a glance at his watch then shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He'd taken a huge risk in contacting Inuyasha. Catherine or Danielle could see him, but, if it came down to it, he had the perfect story to tell his parents if they were told about him talking to the freshman.

'And it won't be too far from the truth, either,' he added silently, finally catching a glimpse of a dark-haired kid approaching him.

"I'm here," a soft voice stated. "What do you want to talk to me about?"

Greg took a small moment to appraise Inuyasha's appearance. Onyx-hued hair that reached his shoulders, amethyst eyes, and an amazing ensemble of black clothing – black dress shirt, black suit jacket, black jeans . . . even his beret was black. The only contrast to Inuyasha's appearance was the gash on his face.

'Wonder if his parents make him dress like that every now and then, or if it's his choice. I know my parents tell me what to wear,' he thought ruefully.

"Yeah," he chuckled nervously. "I want to . . . apologize for yesterday. I was rather upset about being here and took a bit of my frustration out on you then your brother. It was wrong of me and I'm sorry."

The younger student mulled his words over then slowly nodded his head. Greg waited patiently for him to say something.

"Apology accepted," Inuyasha stated, his voice still remaining soft. "But that can't be the only reason why you wanted to talk to me."

"Yeah," he nodded. "You're right about that . . . I need your help."

"My help?" Inuyasha echoed.

"Mm-hmmm . . . As you know, my family's new here," Greg explained, "so I have to be very careful in the friends that I choose."

"Why's that?"

"My parents. They expect me to be the sports hero in our family."

"And maintain good grades?"

"Yeah," Greg nodded. "I really don't mind playing sports, but I don't like hanging around other jocks."

"I can understand that," Inuyasha frowned thoughtfully, "though _most_ of the jocks in this school aren't _that_ bad. None of them are in trouble, anyway. School has some very strict policies about drug use, defacing public property, and shoplifting. A lot of the kids here have relatives who are on the police force."

"And the school goths?" he inquired. "Are they in trouble a lot?"

"No," the freshman shook his head. "There are trouble-makers in each class, but they don't belong to any given 'group', so to speak. Why don't you like other jocks as friends if you're one yourself?"

"Because the jocks in Farmington Hills were thieves who never got caught or in trouble," he said with some heat. "A lot of the goth kids got in trouble because of them."

"I see . . . you're a closet goth, aren't you?"

"How'd you guess?" Greg blinked. Inuyasha shrugged.

"Your tone . . . and the fact that your parents aren't standing over you, _making_ you apologize to me," he smirked slightly. "I take it you want a way around your dilemma. Right?"

"Yeah . . . my dad detests goths."

"So I've gathered . . . All right, here's what you do then . . . Slowly change how you dress. Regular jeans and plain black tees normally suffice."

"But my parents," Greg protested.

"Won't know any different," Inuyasha interrupted. "A _lot_ of the jocks wear plain black tees or black jerseys with blue jeans. If you still need the preppy look, this," he gestured to his own clothing, "is the way to go. You don't have to be over the top to be goth. Believe it or not, not all goths _look_ goth."

"What's that supposed to mean?' Greg demanded, feeling slightly bewildered at Inuyasha's attitude.

"You'll see," came the enigmatic reply. "I have to go. I have O.M. tonight."

Inuyasha disappeared back into the building before anything more could be said. Greg stared at the doors where the freshman had retreated to.

"Well," he told himself, "I got the advice that I wanted . . . I guess. I can take it or leave it."

Greg pulled his car keys out of his pocket. He had a little shopping to do.

888888888

Sesshomaru watched the exchange between his brother and Greg Racer with a certain amount of impassiveness. He had an idea as to what they were discussing, especially when Inuyasha gestured to his clothes. When his half-brother re-entered the school, he resumed his run.

'Well, little brother,' he smirked to himself, 'it seems as if you've made a friend out of a potential enemy. Now only if Danielle would pick up on my hints and leave me alone.'

As he jogged, Sesshomaru lost himself in thought. Not too deeply as to forget to pay attention to his surroundings but contemplative enough to make some of his own guesses on the Racer children, at least on Greg and Danielle. He hadn't met the younger two. Yet.

'Day and night, sun and moon . . . Each powerful in its own right . . . Mother's night. Always has been. Just like Dad's always been day. The Racers' . . . they're day with only a hint of night. They're not going to be able to handle Mom and Dad's combined forces. They're used to having whatever they say go, they practically expect it. But what will happen when the night proves to be mightier than the day? What then?'

Sesshomaru paused for a moment to catch his breath. He'd always thought of his parents as day and night. They had the looks and the personalities for it. But they had always made sure for their children to know that they had to earn whatever it was that they wanted. Just because his parents were famous, in their own rights, didn't mean that their children would have it easy. He'd had a job working at a movie theater since he'd turned sixteen. Before that, he'd worked at one of his parents' restaurants, as his brothers and sister currently did. And he knew that his brothers would be putting applications in at various places over the next year, if they didn't want to continue working for their parents. The new students' behaviours today re-affirmed his belief about their family. The Racers were strictly sun . . . daylight.

'And in for a very rude awakening, if they think they can do and say whatever they feel like without any consequences. Mom and Dad are fighters. Always have been, and they _will_ stand up to these people.'

With a pang of sadness, he knew that things were no longer going to be the same, especially for his half-brother. It always happened, when day began to threaten the night.

888888888

Speed glanced at the piece of paper in his hand, his hand hovering over his now-connected telephone. Not one to hesitate, he picked up the phone and dialed.

"Hello, Inspector Detector? Speed Racer . . . Yeah, everything's fine. Listen, I need for you to do me a favour . . ."


	8. Christmas Memories

Recommended Music: Early Christmas Morning by Cyndi Lauper and anyt other Christmas song

* * *

Torie adjusted the volume on the stereo then strained to listen to the rest of the house. She thought she had heard the phone ringing, but, with the music on, she hadn't been able to tell. And putting the headset on was not a good idea while she baked. When she heard nothing more, she shrugged. It wasn't the first time she thought she'd heard something and it wouldn't be the last. She kept the volume down, just to be on the safe side and turned to see three pairs of eyes – one golden-brown, one blue, and one amethyst – watching her with bright interest.

"What?" she asked. To that, her oldest son began to giggle. Torie raised an eyebrow at the four-year-old. Sesshomaru, for some reason, had been easily amused as of late. _Anything_ could send the child into a fit of giggles. Once he got going, Little Ryan and Inuyasha weren't too far behind him.

"Nothing," he replied innocently. Torie shook her head.

"Okay, silly butt, back into the kitchen!" She made a shooing gesture. Sesshomaru and Little Ryan squealed then scrambled to race each other into the kitchen. Inuyasha held his little arms up. Torie frowned a little as she swung him up to be balanced on her hip. Immediately, he clung to her. Torie kissed his forehead then began to sing softly to the musicas she followed the older boys into the kitchen.

"Cookies! Cookies!" Sesshomaru jumped, grinning.

"Yes, yes," she chuckled. "Cookies. Go sit at the table while I pull them out of the oven."

He dashed over to the table, where Little Ryan had already pulled out a chair and climbed onto. For a moment, she debated setting Inuyasha in a chair then decided against it. Chances were he wasn't feeling good – she thought he'd felt a little warmer than usual when she kissed his forehead – and he'd probably gotten into one of his "I want Mommy" moods.

'I can manage,' she thought as she retrieved an oven mitt. 'I have before.'

"Mommy, can I have a cookie please?"

"When they've cooled down, baby."

With a gaining ease, Torie pulled the cookie sheets out of the oven and placed a few more in. She'd eventually have to set Inuyasha down to frost and package the cookies, but that wouldn't be for a while yet. If she had to, she could frost cookies with Sesshomaru when Little Ryan and Inuyasha took their naps. While the next batch of cookies were baking, she turned to her sons at the table. Sesshomaru had been gazing at her thoughtfully. Or, rather, he gazed at his brother cradled in her arms.

"Inuyasha's not feeling good, is he?" Though he posed it as a question, it sounded more like a statement.

"Probably not, Sessh," she replied, sitting next to him. Little Ryan, when she glanced at him, had rested his head on the table.

"Will Santa still bring him presents if he's not feeling good?"

"Santa?" Torie smiled a little. "Who's been telling you about Santa?"

"Nana and Grandma," he stated. "They said Santa only comes to visit good boys and girls."

"I see . . . Well," Torie began, readjusting Inuyasha so that he was nestled snug in her lap. "Santa visits all children who celebrate Christmas and who believe in him."

"Like me?"

"Yes," she nodded, "like you. Good children get presents from Santa, but bad children get coal in their stockings and under the tree . . . Like in _The Santa Clause_ movies. You remember watching those?"

"Uh-huh . . ."

"It's like that. However, just because your brother doesn't feel good and may get a little cranky doesn't mean he won't get a present from Santa. You're allowed to be a _little_ grumpy when you're sick or not feeling," she explained. Torie chuckled at the relief written on Sesshomaru's face.

"Can I stay up and wait for Santa on Christmas Eve?"

"No, baby, you can't," she smiled. "Santa won't be coming to our house on Christmas Eve. We asked him to come on the night of the winter solstice. See, Daddy and I celebrate Yule and the changing of the seasons."

"Pagan holiday," Sesshomaru murmured.

"Right. But that doesn't mean that the two holidays have different meanings. Far from it. They're both about celebrating the miracle of life and family."

"Oh . . . can I stay up and wait for him on the night of the winter solstice then?"

Torie couldn't refrain from chuckling. Her sons were, without any doubt, the greatest joys of her life.

"Baby, he won't come if you're waiting for him. Santa has a secret way of climbing down chimneys that no one, not even the movie makers, knows about. He doesn't even tell Mommies and Daddies about it."

Sesshomaru's eyes widened.

"Really really?"

"Really really," she smiled. They fell silent for a few moments, the only sounds in the kitchen being the soft breathing form Inuyasha and Little Ryan, the thumping of Sesshomaru's feet against his chair, and the music coming from the living room. She'd have to find a way of getting the cookies out of the oven and getting Little Ryan out of his chair before he fell out.

'Nothing I can't handle,' she told herself. 'I'll get the kids first.' Adjusting Inuyasha once more, Torie got to her feet then stepped around Sesshomaru to scoop up her other baby. Little Ryan immediately held onto her then settled right back down.

"Stay right there, Sesshomaru. I'll be right back."

"Okay, Mommy."

Torie had just stepped into the living room when the front door opened. Her husband came inside, stomping some snow off his boots. His cheeks were slightly red from the cold and he pushed the door shut before turning to see her snail her way to the couch.

"My goodness woman," he chided softly, not even bothering to take his jacket off. "You're going to give yourself a heart attack if you keep this up."

"I love you, too, Ryan," she smiled sweetly. She had made it halfway to the couch. "Will you pull the cookies out of the oven for me please? I'd like to tuck them in."

"How about I take one of them from you before you collapse?" he inquired. Ryan had already moved to her side.

"No," she shook her head. "I've got them. Besides, I want to check Inuyasha's temp before I go back into the kitchen."

"Torie . . ." He gave her a worried look.

"Ryan, I've got them," she assured him. "Please check on Sesshomaru and pull the cookies out of the oven."

"All right," he sighed before giving her a quick kiss. Ryan shrugged out of his jacket and hung it up before disappearing into the kitchen. Torie set each child on one end of the couch, tucking a large blanket over the toddlers. She had just came back from retrieving the baby thermometer when Ryan met her at the couch. Torie knelt next to Inuyasha, smoothing back his ebony hair and placing the thermometer in Inuyasha's ear.

"He was quiet yesterday," came her husband's statement. "More so than usual. Cookies are out, by the way. Sesshomaru's dusting the ones you pulled out earlier."

"At least he's occupied for the moment."

The thermometer beeped and Torie checked it. "And we have a child with a low-grade temp. Probably teething again. Poor baby."

Between her two youngest, Inuyasha had yet to grow in all of his baby teeth, Torie had noted, and she made sure she kept an eye on that, much in the same way she listened and watched her children whenever they had a complaint of some kind. Like a new mother who has slowly eased up in her worries but not entirely. She didn't think she'd ever be able to ease up in her worries. In the space of three months, she had been blessed with, not one child, but three, and it had presented challenges to her she had not been truly prepared to face.

"To think," Ryan smiled, thumbing their youngest son's cheek. "To think we were ready for parenthood when we had Little Ryan. Then Sesshomaru and Inuyasha came along . . . Turns out we weren't ready. Would you change anything about this, Torie? Anything at all?"

"No," she smiled. "I wouldn't change a thing, Ryan. Granted, we weren't ready for three children at the same time, but we've adapted, we've managed." Torie raised her head so that her doe eyes met his ocean blue. "They're the reasons why I can love this holiday again."


	9. A New Home, An Unusual Encounter

"There! That's the last one!" Kagome smiled happily as she placed the last piece of folded clothing into her bureau. She had to admit that her new room was much larger than her old one in Japan. In fact, the entire house was twice as big as the old one in Japan. Her mother had her own room, as did Miroku and Rin. Kohaku, Shippou, and Souta had all agreed to share a room, and so did she and Sango. It was going to be fun and exciting, having her best friend from the Feudal Age with her.

"Good job, Kagome," Sango praised from her perch on the bed. Kirara sat in her lap, Buyo next to her.

"Thanks, Sango."

She found her chair then slumped into it. For a moment, neither girl spoke. Tomorrow, they started school, something that Kagome, Souta and her mother had done their best to try and prepare everyone for. Now that she didn't have to worry about collecting jewel shards, Kagome had no doubts that she'd be able to excel. The American educational system was said to be vastly different from the Japanese, after all . . . once one got by the language barrier.

"Tomorrow's the big day," Sango commented softly.

"Yeah . . . At least this school doesn't have a uniform code to follow by. We can all wear casual clothing," Kagome mused. "I don't think you'd be comfortable in the short skirts that I had to wear for school."

"No . . . probably not . . . Kagome?"

"Yeah?"

"What's it going to be like, going to school tomorrow? I know you were always worried about tests and exams. Is that what we're in for?"

"Kind of . . . I'm not entirely sure as to what to expect. If we were in Japan, I could tell you . . ."

"But we're not," the taijiya stated. "We're in a different country."

"Exactly . . . I know Mom said the school we'll be going to is one of the best and highest ranked schools in Philadelphia and that they boast a lot of after school activities . . . The teachers could make it easy, they could make it hard . . . it just depends on the subject . . . and some of the students may even tease us because we're different . . ."

"Because we're from another country?" Sango frowned. "That doesn't seem right. Not after everything you've said about America."

"Just like it wasn't right that Inuyasha was picked on because he was hanyou," she sighed. "But the world is a strange and cruel place. And everything I've said about America is more or less a generalization. People come here for a better life. But that doesn't mean we'll be accepted. It isn't fair, really."

"You got that right," the other girl muttered then became thoughtful.

"Kagome! Sango! Dinner's ready!"

"Coming, Mom!" Kagome called back then glanced over at the taijiya. "Ready?"

"Yeah, I guess . . . I just wish I didn't feel so nervous," Sango smiled as they got to their feet.

"Nervous? Over dinner?" Kagome teased.

"No," Sango shook her head. "Nervous because of tomorrow . . . Inuyasha would probably scoff at me for feeling this way but I can't help it. I just don't know what to expect."

"This coming from a girl who's faced off and slain demons for most of her life."

"Winning every time but this . . ." Sango sighed. "This isn't the same. At least with demons, I could figure out their behaviour, cut them off, and do my duty."

"Don't worry, Sango. You know I'll be in every class with you. Miroku, too. There's nothing to worry about . . . And that reminds me . . ."

Both girls scrambled down the stairs and into the dining room, taking their seats at the table. As her mother served up curry, Kagome gave Miroku a long list of dos and dont'ts for their new home and the school they'd be attending.

The next morning dawned early and bright, and sent everyone into a panic. Mrs. Higurashi had busied herself with preparing breakfast and lunch as everyone scurried around, trying to get everything ready for their first day of school. Before she knew it, Kagome had arrived with Sango and Miroku to West Hall High School. Around them were a lot of students, some dressed casually, some dressed outrageously and gothic. Some students were of Asian descent, others of African descent but most were of European descent. The student body boasted a wide range of personality types and individual tastes as well as individual subcultures. Though she'd always known American schools were different from Japanese schools, the variety she was seeing blew Kagome's mind.

"Kagome . . ."

"Yes, Miroku?"

"Was your school in Japan ever this big?" he inquired, his eyes wide at the three-story building.

"Yep."

"And the students this . . . different?"

"No."

"How are we going to find our classes?" Sango interjected.

"It says on our schedules. And, if we get too lost, we can always ask for help," Kagome replied. Each taking a deep breath, they entered the building and headed straight for the office. While they had their schedules, the school had not been able to give them locker assignments and had instructed Mrs. Higurashi to have the high school students go to the office on their first. By then, they'd know for certain if they had any spare lockers or if the newcomers had to partner up with someone. Kagome hoped that there'd be at least one empty locker available. That way she'd be able to share it with Sango and Miroku. She crossed her fingers as Sango opened the office door.

A few minutes later, they were walking out, Kagome holding a piece of paper and feeling rather satisfied. There _had_ been one available locker, so she and Sango could share one. Of course, the secretary, a Mrs. Williams, had informed them that the school only allowed two people per locker but things weren't that bad. Miroku had been assigned to share a locker with a girl named Jade Andersen and her locker happened to be right next to Kagome's.

"Things are going rather well so far," Miroku smiled. "Wouldn't you agree, Kagome?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "Not too bad. So far. The day's just begun, though. I wonder what this Jade Andersen looks like."

"Mrs. Williams _did_ say that this girl would be hard to miss," Sango began. "Said she dresses differently from most of the student body so she stands out."

They found their lockers at that point and Kagome set about opening hers. She'd gotten it on the third try, at the same time a feminine voice said, "Excuse me. I need to get to my locker."

Kagome, Sango, and Miroku turned their heads to see a dark-haired girl with red eyes standing behind them . . . with a white baboon outfit draped over her shoulders. Her hair had been pulled up into a tight topknot, blue eyeshadow rimming her eyes. Kagome's jaw dropped.

'It can't be . . . but it looks like . . . no . . . Naraku?'

Miroku quickly stepped out of the way, allowing the girl access to her locker. A quick glance at him then Sango told her they were just as shocked as she was by this girl's appearance and uncanny resemblance to their enemy.

"Something wrong?" the girl asked, looking up from grabbing her books off of a crate at the bottom. There were also several bank bags that were stuffed full with something, and several bottles of water and soda. Kagome quickly shook her head.

"Huh? Oh no . . . not at all. My name is Kagome Higurashi and these are my friends, Miroku Rei and Sango Shinsei. We just moved here from Japan . . . This is our first day."

"Jade Andersen," came the reply. She then rose and focused her gaze on Miroku. "So you're the new guy who needed a locker mate. The office asked if I'd be willing to share mine. I think I was the only one left who didn't have one so it didn't sound like I had much of a choice."

"Is there a problem with that?" he inquired.

"Nope," Jade shook her head. "Not at all. Just don't mess with my stuff, kay?"

"And you'll stay out of mine?"

"Yep. That's how it usually works," she smiled, adjusting her books. "And I don't care if you hang up pictures on the inside. Just no girls in bikinis or some teeny bopper artist. Unless it's J-pop. School spirit's okay, especially if you join a team."

"What about family and friends?" Miroku asked.

"Definitely acceptable and so is artwork, providing it's done in good taste," Jade replied. "Oh, and one of my friends sometimes stores stuff in my locker as well as his own. _Please_ do not touch any of it. Could be disastrous if you do, depending on what he tosses in."

"And why's that?" Sango ventured.

"Because . . ." Jade hesitated then motioned for them to come closer. When they were, she lowered her voice and continued, "because they're kind of like medical supplies. He doesn't keep his crash kit here, just some other stuff he uses. If they end up missing or destroyed and an emergency comes up, he could be in serious trouble."

"Like how serious?" Kagome wasn't sure how much of what Jade said she was going to believe but she felt it wouldn't hurt to hear her out. And if they met this guy friend, they could ask him if there was any truth to it.

"Like he could end up in the hospital," the red-eyed girl stated seriously.

"What does he store in your locker?" Miroku inquired as he moved to hang his jacket up in the locker. He appeared to be somewhat relaxed around Jade, to Kagome's eyes.

'Or maybe he's just following the school's rules about two people to a locker. Either way, it's just as much his locker as it is Jade's.'

"Usually some sort of drink and snack, just in case his sugar drops, and his art supplies. Sometimes an extra glucometer and his crash kit. Depends on the day he's having."

"Shouldn't the glucometer and the crash kit be in with the nurse?" Kagome frowned.

"The nurse has one and his insulin. But most of his classes are in this area," Jade explained. "If he crashes, he needs something quick. Mrs. O'Connell usually calls ahead to let them know if he's bringing the crash kit with him. His brothers each have one in their lockers, too. He's that bad of a diabetic. Besides, if it's just the extra glucometer, it just means that the one on his wrist is glitching or his mom's fretting. It's happened before so he'd rather be safe than sorry. Know what I mean?"

"Kind of," Kagome murmured.

"And where is this friend of yours? I'd like to meet him," Miroku stated. Jade laughed.

"Knowing him, he's probably already here and in first hour. Which, if I'm going to be on time, I need to get going. Running upstairs is murder! Anyway, it was nice to meet you guys and I'll probably see you between classes. Don't forget to close the locker, kay, Miroku? I'll catch you guys later!"

In a flash of white, Jade took off down the hall then disappeared around the corner. Kagome shook her head. The day had just gotten a little more interesting.

888888888

Sango sighed as she tried to keep an eye on Kagome. It was time for lunch, and the trio was having a bit of a difficult time trying to find a place where they could sit together. As they made their way through the mass of people, she idly wondered how Kohaku was faring.

'Probably better than I am,' she chuckled to herself.

Truth be told, her day had not been that bad. Even though they'd managed to find Naraku's reincarnation, Jade had turned out to be helpful in the breaks between classes, and had explained to her and Miroku that she was wearing contact lenses to make her eyes red. The dark-haired girl had even introduced them to some of her friends and talked about her adopted family but the diabetic friend, as well as her younger adopted sister, remained elusive. Then there was the teachers. All had gone out of their way to welcome the small group of new students but it didn't stop them from assigning a lot of homework. The amount of work the instructors gave them was difficult and seemed endless, but Kagome had been quick to assure her and Miroku that it was normal. About the only thing that Kagome had been surprised about was the difficulty level.

"I'd been expecting it to be a little easier than back home," she'd confessed after their second hour. "But this is good. It means that we're going to get a good education. Maybe even into a good college or university, if we do really well!"

It had also been between second and third hour that they had run into some old friends of Kagome's. Sango had only met them once before, recalled their names as being Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi, and had thought them to be rather decent . . . until they'd started gushing over some of the cute men that attended the school, going on mostly about a fellow senior named Greg Racer, Jr. At least, Yuka and Eri had. Ayumi had started conversing with Jade. Then, after Jade had left for her next class, Yuka and Eri had started criticizing the sophomore about her appearance. If Kagome had said anything to them, Sango didn't know. She had quietly excused herself and headed for the next class. Granted, Sango didn't fully trust Jade but that was based entirely off of her feelings towards Naraku, of whom Jade was really nothing like that. She felt that Eri and Yuka had been entirely out of line in their criticisms and had wanted to get away from them as quickly as possible, saying nothing out of respect for Kagome. Sango's stomach growled at her as they continued to search around for a table that had at least three empty seats.

'Kami, it doesn't feel like this day is ever going to end! Now if only we could find a place to sit down and eat! I'm hungry!'

"Hey, guys! Over here!" a familiar voice called out.

Sango glanced over to see Jade standing up and waving them over. Next to her sat Ayumi, and she, too, waved them over. She watched as Kagome hesitated for a brief moment. Then the young miko marched over to the table. Sango followed suit, Miroku right behind her. Jade waited until they had reached her to sit back down. Sango noticed with some amount of elation that the baboon costume was no longer on the girl but rather draped over the back of her chair, and that there were two other people with her – a girl with short, blonde hair, and a guy with long dark hair that had been pulled into a low tail. Both were dressed in black. The girl reminded Sango of Kanna, Naraku's white-haired incarnation, but the guy had his back to her, a bag on the floor next to him. He paid no attention to them as he rummaged through it.

"Thank you, Jade," Miroku murmured.

"For what?" The dark-haired girl took a bite of her food as she watched her male companion dig for something.

"For letting us share our lunch with you," Miroku replied.

"Oh . . . think nothing of it," Jade winked. "No biggie. Besides, I wanted you to meet my little sister, Trysten, and my best bud, Inuyasha. Inuyasha, Trysten, these are the new students, Kagome Higurashi, Miroku Rei, and Sango Shinsei. They're from Japan."

Trysten glanced over at them and offered a tiny smile but Sango barely noticed it. Her attention was focused on the young man next to Trysten, a chill stealing over her the moment Jade had said, "Inuyasha." With nervous anticipation, Sango gazed at the dark-haired boy as he straightened and turned amethyst eyes, along with another familiar face, towards them . . .


	10. The Homecoming Dance

There are only a few times in the life of a high school student that he or she really looks forward to, no matter what their niche is. For the most part. Other than Greg, the Racer household was no exception. Though the event was two weeks away, his mother and his twin sister had started fussing. What dress she would wear, how her hair would be done, makeup . . . the entire usual girl hooplah. His younger sister already had her dress and he had his tux . . . his only problem being his father at that point.

'The pressure's on,' he thought morosely as he listened to his mother and Danielle gabber excitedly about the dance and the possibility of Dani becoming Homecoming Queen. Greg suppressed a sigh of annoyance, setting his pen down. His father glanced at him.

"Something wrong?" Speed asked.

"No," Greg shook his head. "Just trying to do the family tree and figure out a presentation for the end of the week."

"A stupid thing to do, if you ask me," the older Racer muttered.

"Dad, it's Heritage Week. Every project we do is worth twenty points of extra credit, and it's the school's way of exposing us a wide of variety of cultures."

"And I have nothing against that," Speed explained gently. "I just think that your time could be better spent focusing on your studies and athletics . . . maybe even _try_ to become the Homecoming King."

"With Danielle trying to become the Homecoming Queen? Dad, that's just gross."

"There's no guarantee that you'll both win. Besides, it won't hurt to try."

Greg shook his head. His father just didn't get it. Thanks to Danielle's attitude, most of the senior class thought that he and his sister were full of themselves. To compete for Homecoming King while she went after the queen title would only add to that fire. Besides, it felt _wrong_ to him and it would give people a very bad impression about his relationship with his sister. But Greg said nothing of it to his father. Speed wanted his children to be the top of the class yet also be mindful of what others thought of them.

'Can't have it both ways, Dad,' he thought to himself as he picked his pen up and went back to his family tree.

888888888

"I don't get this," Sango frowned, gazing at the paper before her. She had decided to forgo creating a family tree – her family was dead and had been for five hundreds years – and had decided to try to give a demonstration on martial arts for her classmates. Unfortunately, the rules had not made it out until the third day of Heritage Week and the deadline for signing up was that day. The rules hadn't made much sense to her and she was trying to figure out what it was that she could actually do. Sighing softly, she poked at her lunch.

Since the move to America, it had felt like one big surprise after another. The first day of school she, Miroku, and Kagome had met Naraku's, Kanna's, and Inuyasha's reincarnations, Jade, Trysten, and Inuyasha. And they were the best of friends. It made Sango glad to know that Inuyasha had, in fact, been reincarnated, especially with the way Kagome's eyes finally lit back up at seeing him. But they'd been in for a bit of a shock. Inuyasha wasn't quite fifteen and he was dating Trysten. And he was different from the Inuyasha they had known. Artistic, quiet, almost to the point of being shy . . . not the loud-mouth, arrogant hanyou that they had known. But Sango attributed the differences to how the two had grown up. The hanyou Inuyasha had grown up alone, people despising him for what he was. The reincarnated Inuyasha had a stable family environment, a mother and father who loved and protected him and encouraged him in whatever he wanted to do; two brothers who looked after him and helped him if he needed it and a little sister whom he adored.

'And that's when the other surprises came in,' she thought.

After they had met Inuyasha's parents, Ryan and Torie O'Connell, they had learned that the O'Connells were Mrs. Higurashi's landlords. And the heads of the O'Connell clan were among the nicest people Sango had ever met. Other than Mrs. Higurashi, Sango never would have expected anyone to take in two extra children, especially after they'd already had their first one. Ryan and Torie had. Inuyasha and his oldest brother had been adopted. It had been when his older brothers and little sister had been introduced that one of the final shocks came in. His oldest brother just happened to be named Sesshomaru . . . and the reincarnation of the deceased taiyoukai, minus the facial markings.

"Everything all right, Sango?"

Her thoughts interrupted, the former taijiya glanced up to see Inuyasha take the seat across from her. The rest of their group – Ayume, Kagome, Miroku, Jade, Trysten, Steve, G, and Nitro – had yet to join them.

"Huh? Oh. Yeah," she smiled. "Just trying to figure out the rules of the martial arts display."

"Oh. _That_," he smirked. "Yeah. A lot of people are. Dad's not going to be happy with the way his words got butchered and jumbled."

"Your dad's running this?"

"Yeah," he nodded, taking a drink from a diet soda. "He and the J.V. football coach, Mr. Racer, were asked to coordinate it. You thinking about participating?"

"Something like that."

"Then just show up at my place after school tonight. Mom's going to be home for a while and Dad should be home by the time school's out. He's the one you want to talk to about it, anyway. And take the rules with you. That way he can see what was done."

"You're not going to be home?"

"Not until later. O.M. and fencing lessons tonight," he replied. "I'll call them to let them know you'll be stopping by."

"Thank you. I appreciate it," Sango murmured as a group of senior girls walked by.

"Hey, _O'Connell_," one of the girls sneered, causing a few of her companions to glance nervously at each other. "Having fun?"

Irritation flashed in amethyst depths, but his face never gave any indication. Sango only caught it because she happened to be sitting across from him. And, instead of letting his irritation get the better of him, as he would have in the past, Inuyasha plastered a grin on his face then turned towards the offending senior.

"Sorry, Danielle. As much as I would like to go out on a date with you, I can't. I already have a girlfriend who's nicer, sweeter, and prettier than you are," he stated, his tone _almost_ apologetic. "Please stop asking me. It's becoming quite embarrassing."

"Why you little . . ." she hissed. Inuyasha waggled a finger at her.

"Tut, tut," he smirked. "Not the way to behave when Big Brother _is_ watching."

Danielle scowled then stormed off with a _humph_. The girls with her scurried after, one of them giving Inuyasha an apologetic smile. When they were gone, he let out a sigh then offered Sango the barest and faintest of grins.

"Sorry about that, but Danielle's been like this since she moved here," he explained, "and it's because her mom and dad think I'm a trouble-maker, though her dad's more adamant about it than her mom."

"Why would they think that?" Sango frowned. "Do they even know you?"

"No. The Racers just moved here, been here probably about a week longer than you. But her parents, especially Mr. Racer, think that, because I like to dress in black and goth mostly, I'm nothing but trouble. And they tried to convince Mom of it, like he knew me better than she did."

"But you're close with your mom," she pointed out. "Closer than most guys I've met. How would he know you better than her?"

To that, Inuyasha shrugged.

"Don't know. But that's what he thinks and, from the one time I met him, he expects everyone to agree with him. He isn't wrong, everyone else is. I guess that's just what they're used to from where they lived before."

"So, because her father feels that he needs to be right all the time, this Danielle goes out of her way to try and aggravate you," Sango grumbled. "To prove that her father's right. I just don't get some people."

"I try _not_ to let her bother me," Inuyasha soothed. "You shouldn't either. I mean, I _did_ grow up with two older brothers who really liked to compete with each other and who liked to torment me." Then he grinned rather devilishly and Sango felt goose bumps on her arms, deja vu coming over her. She'd seen him grin like that before, only with fangs and golden-amber eyes, and she couldn't help but feel a pang of hurt as she gazed at him. Like Kagome, Sango missed the hanyou Inuyasha very much. "One of whom Danielle really, _really_ likes."

"You mean?" Her eyes widened at his implication.

"Yep. Sesshomaru."

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"I swear, one day . . ." Danielle seethed as she retreated into the upper halls of the school.

"You really should leave Inuyasha alone," one of her friends interrupted. "Trying to aggravate him like that is only going to get you into trouble, not to mention ruin any chances of _friendship_ you might have with Sesshomaru!"

"Lila," Danielle warned. The other girl shook her head.

"No. I'm not going to back down on this, Dani. I may not like Inuyasha but it's because the kid creeps me out every now and then. However, he _is_ Sesshomaru's younger brother. That I have to respect. And I value Sesshomaru's friendship. I will _not_ jeopardize that simply because you're getting kicks trying to torment his little brother. If you can't handle that then I suggest you find someone else to be your friend. Good day."

Lila whirled around then stalked away. Danielle blinked. Had one of her friends talked back to her then walk away?

"She's right, Dani," a second voice whispered. "You need to leave Inuyasha alone. Sesshomaru won't tolerate it at all."

"If Sesshomaru's _that_ protective of his little brother then why doesn't he say something to me?" Danielle scowled.

"Because his silence _is_ his way of telling you, Dani," the second girl stated. "It's a sign of his disapproval. You don't know him the way that we do. For those of us who've known him a long time, it's his way of saying if his little brothers aren't good enough for you to be at least be _nice_ to then you're not good enough to be his friend."

"What! That's ridiculous!"

"They're a close-knit family, Dani. Family before friends. What else would you expect from them?" came the quiet inquiry. "You can't say you wouldn't be the same way when it comes to your brothers and sister."

Danielle's scowl deepened. This was _not_ what she was used to! If people were your friends, they agreed with you and did as you did. At least . . . her friends in Farmington Hills had. These girls were different. These girls liked her, as her friends from home did. Unlike her friends in Farmington Hills, however, they were not impressed by the amount of money she had or her family last night.

'I'll just have to remedy that,' she thought. 'I will make them respect my family name, the same way they respect the O'Connell last night. And I _will_ make Inuyasha pay. One way or another, I will.'

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"I can't believe this! Sango, I'm so happy for you!" Kagome exclaimed, capturing the taijiya in a hug. "I can't believe that the school does this!"

It was a bright and cool autumn day, and the Higurashi family were attending the high school football game. More precisely, the Homecoming football game for West Hall High, and half-time was drawing near. Both girls had left their family and friends in the stands to take their places in the royal court – Kagome as a potential Homecoming Queen and Sango as an official member of the "court," as the soon-to-be-announced King's Japanese bodyguard and "assassin." While Kagome's status remained uncertain, Sango's was definite. Not only would the taijiya be in the following parade, she would also be in the half-time show, demonstrating her skills with a blade. Somehow, it was a bonus for participating in Heritage Week the week before. Not only had they earned extra credit by participating but had guaranteed spots in the "royal court," depending on what they had done.

"Thanks," Sango chuckled, finding Inuyasha talking with Jade. "You better go and take your place. It's almost half-time and they'll be making the announcements soon. Good luck, Kagome."

"Thanks."

The two separated and took their places among their fellow court members, waiting for the marching band to signal that half-time had come . . .

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Balloons and flowers of blue and white decorated the walls and ceilings in strategic positions. Backdrops of painted fantasy depictions – knights fighting dragons and wizards casting spells – hung from the ceiling against the wall, creating a mystique and romantic atmosphere. Streamers arched gracefully from one of the ceiling to the other, each twisted in a myriad of blues and white. A strobe light had been placed at one end of the room and a disco ball in the center of the ceiling while fog machines had been placed in opposite corners, filling the dance floor. In a word, it was magical. Sesshomaru had to admit that the freshman class had done an excellent job of decorating and coming up with a very suitable theme.

"I don't believe this," Austen breathed, her blue-green eyes sparkling. "Did they get Inuyasha involved in this? They must have! He's the only one I know who could paint like this!"

"Yeah, they did, amazingly enough," he nodded, drinking in her appearance and the way her pale yellow dress draped over her body. "I've always known he'd be able to do something like this."

"Now you're just bragging," the tall brunette chided with a wink. Music had begun to play, allowing nearly every couple to start dancing.

"I'm allowed," Sesshomaru smiled. "He's _my_ otouto."

"I know," she sighed contentedly, leaning her head against his shoulder. "You'll have to let him know what you thought of this."

"Later," he promised, embracing her close. "Right now, it's just you and me, and that's how I want it."

"Yeah . . ."

Surreptitiously, he glanced at the brother in question. Inuyasha had opted to wear one of their father's white dress shirts with a pair of black loafers, looking formal without actually _being_ formal. The dark-haired youth seemed content to just stay on the sidelines laugh with his friends.

'A trait he's picked up from Mother, no doubt. Just as long as he's having fun,' Sesshomaru thought as he gazed about for Little Ryan. 'So long as they're both having fun . . . that's all that counts. For tonight. Enjoy it, little brothers. It'll be over before you know it.'

He paused for a moment to adjust the crown on his head. He'd have to dance with Danielle Racer later, for the King and Queen's dance, and it was not a prospect he was looking forward to. But it was only one dance, and he could always excuse himself afterwards to check on his brothers then resume dancing with Austen. It would be the only time he'd be glad that Inuyasha had diabetes, a thought that would later hound him with guilt.


	11. When Tragedy Strikes

"Inuyasha! Inuyasha, stay with me," a voice demanded. "Come on, otouto. Take a drink. That's it. A little more."

He barely managed to swallow the soda that had been pressed to his lips. His head pounded and he felt himself trembling violently. He had to tell them what had happened. It was important. Struggling, he tried to open his eyes and say something but the words weren't coming.

"What's happening? Why's he shaking like that?" another voice inquired. His wrist lifted up of its own accord, slender fingers wrapped gently around it.

"His blood sugar's dropped. It's dangerously low," the first voice replied with a growl. "Dammit, how did this happen?"

"I've called Mom . . ."

"There's an ambulance on the way . . ."

The soda bottle pressed to his lips again.

"Come on, otouto, take another drink . . ."

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Speed took another drink of coffee as he read the weekend paper. He was still disappointed that his son had not even bothered to try and run for Homecoming king, like he had wanted, but he had to admit that Greg had been right. If both twins had won the titles, they'd have been ridiculed for having to dance together. But, lately, there had been something different about Greg, something Speed couldn't quite put a finger on.

'Ah well,' he shrugged. 'Can't worry too much about it. He's becoming a man. So long as he isn't hanging around punks like Inuyasha O'Connell, I don't care. It's his senior year, and he's in the top of his game.'

Speed sighed as he thought of the youngest O'Connell boy. He'd contacted Inspector Detector to dig up whatever he could on Inuyasha and had been very specific as to what to look for – drug use, vandalism . . . the usual things goth kids were up to. Instead, the police officer had only been able to find an excellent track record on the boy. Made the honour roll at school, belonged to the National Honour Society, took fencing and violin lessons . . . the only thing Inspector Detector hadn't been able to figure out was why Inuyasha visited a local health clinic at least three times a week.

'Must be a drug rehabilitation center,' he told himself. 'Just because he doesn't have a record doesn't mean anything. He's just been careful not to get caught by either the police or his parents.'

The sound of a car pulling into the driveway caught his attention. Frowning, Speed set the paper and his coffee cup down. He and Trixie had just entered the walkway when the door opened to admit Greg, Danielle, and Catherine.

Greg had a somber expression on his face as he set his car keys on the table next to the door. Danielle was upset and Catherine's face was as pale as a ghost. Immediately, Catherine dashed for her room, tears forming in her eyes.

"Aren't you guys home early?" Trixie inquired.

"They called the dance off," Greg replied. "A student got sent to the hospital by ambulance."

"Oh my goodness!" Trixie gasped.

"Before you start feeling sympathetic, Mom, the student was Inuyasha O'Connell," Danielle stated with a snort. "I heard someone say it was an overdose of some kind. Ruined my chances of dancing with Sesshomaru, too."

"His blood sugar _dropped_, Dani!" Greg exclaimed. "Scared the living daylights out of everyone! His brothers were trying to get him to come to!"

"One of the students found needles scattered on the hallway floor . . ."

Speed bit back a growl then grabbed a jacket, his cell phone, and his keys. Like a shot, he exited his house, and had dialed Inspector Detector's number. If Inuyasha had been taken to the hospital by ambulance then a call to 9-1-1 had been made.

'Time to finally give Ryan and Torie O'Connell a piece of my mind,' he told himself as he drove. 'And it's time that I told them about their son's little _habit_. Now they'll _have_ listen to me and see that I'm right. Their son is nothing but trouble.'

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Torie O'Connell heaved a weary sigh and wiped away her tears. Crying wouldn't do her any good. Not when her children needed her. She could cry later.

Gently, she took her youngest son's hand into hers, mindful of the IV and the heart monitor. Across from her sat Ryan, and Sesshomaru had taken the chair in the corner. Little Ryan had taken Anna to the vending machines for some snacks and drinks. Something to distract them, if only for a few moments.

Inuyasha lay still in the bed between her and her husband, his eyes closed. He'd been hooked up to oxygen the moment the paramedics had gotten to him. He'd also closed his eyes on the way to St. Jude's and had yet to open them again.

Five years. It had been five long years since the pediatrician had informed them that Inuyasha had diabetes, and it had been five years since Inuyasha had had to stay in the hospital . . .

_Five years before . . ._

"Da da da da da," Torie hummed as she sat, Indian-style, in the laundry room and folded laundry. For some reason, she had Beethoven running through her head and she felt compelled to let it out. With a smile, she glanced at the nine-year-old folding wash cloths with her. Amethyst eyes gazed towards the floor, almost down-trodden, as he finished the task before him.

"Feeling all right, baby?"

"Yeah," Inuyasha nodded. "Just wish we could've gone on vacation somewhere. That's all."

"I know," she murmured. "I wish we could've gone, too, but it's best to stay home and be safe rather than be sorry. I don't want some strange doctor giving you a check up should anything happen."

Inuyasha offered her a wan smile and pulled more wash cloths from the basket. Torie watched him for a minute, debating on whether or not she should have him check his blood sugar. Just to be on the safe side.

Inuyasha had been sick for the last three weeks or so, and had complained often of feeling dizzy. Worried, Torie had kept an eye on him, hoping that it would run its course, whatever was bothering him. However, his symptoms had grown worse and she had become suspicious. It had been within the last two weeks of him complaining of dizziness that she'd taken him to the doctor and it had been then that the doctor had diagnosed Inuyasha with diabetes. Things had changed rather drastically since then. Meal preparations hadn't changed that much – there was still plenty that Inuyasha could eat. All he needed was a sugar substitute, which Torie used already – but snacks and drinks had. Candy had practically disappeared from their house, and sugar-free drinks sat in the fridge, next to the juices and Kool-Aid. The worse part, though, had been the testing and getting Inuyasha to give himself his own injections. He still hated needles and often cried when he had to take his insulin. Fate had played a cruel trick on the small boy and it pained Torie to see him have to go through all of this.

"Mom! We're done!"

Footsteps echoed in the hallway as Little Ryan, followed by Anna, plowed into the room. Torie glanced at them, slightly grateful for the interruption.

"You're done?"

They both nodded.

"The windows cleaned? Beds made? Toys off the floor?"

"Yeah."

"Uh-huh."

"All right," she gazed at them then smiled. "Anna, go get me your brother's glucometer from the bathroom. It should be in the medicine cabinet. Ryan, start folding the hand towels."

"But Mom!" came the chorus of cries.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm terrible," she chuckled. "I'm mean and rotten. Just go, Anna. Your father will be home soon with his cousin and his friends. You can pounce on him all you like then. What's Sesshomaru doing, Ryan?"

As Anna went to retrieve the glucometer, Little Ryan sat down and set about folding towels.

"Doing his research project," he answered. "Won't let anyone into his room."

"Ah. So it's the usual then. Right?"

"Yeah."

"Mom, do I really have to check my blood sugar?" Inuyasha pouted.

"Yes, dear. You don't look like you're feeling very good and I just want to be sure that it isn't that. Okay?" Torie smiled sadly at her son's pout then held her arms out to him. He immediately came to her, curling up in her lap. She kissed his forehead.

"I know you don't like this, baby," Torie murmured. "I don't like it, either. But it's something we have to do to keep you healthy. I don't want you to have to go to the hospital."

"I know," he sighed.

"Hey," she gently pulled his head back so that he was looking directly at her. "I have an idea. Once we get everything under control, how about we take a trip to New York? Spend the weekend there? Would you like that?"

"Would that be our vacation?"

"Yep," she nodded. "That'll be our vacation. Sound good to you?"

"Yeah," he smiled. She glanced at Little Ryan.

"Sound good to you, Ryan?"

"Yep!" he chirped, grinning.

"Here it is, Mommy!"

Anna dashed into the room and handed over the glucometer.

"Thank you," Torie smiled. "Now start putting the socks together."

"Yes, Mommy," she groaned, plopping onto the ground. Torie shook her head and helped Inuyasha with the glucometer.

"Behave yourself," she chided gently. "When your brother's feeling better, we'll take a trip to New York. Kay?"

"Really?"

"I have to talk to Daddy first but, yeah. We'll go there and spend the weekend. But only when your brother's feeling better. Okay?"

"Okay!"

She had just gotten the results when the dogs started barking. Two heads shot up and eyes widened. A second later, a familiar male voice rang out, "I'm home!"

Little Ryan and Anna scrambled out of the room as Torie got to her feet, Inuyasha still clinging to her.

'Time to greet our guests,' she thought, sidestepping laundry baskets on her way out.

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"Wow," Kimber Benton breathed as she gazed at the historic, five-story house before her. It had been painted white with a dark grey trim, a sprawling yard, and what appeared to be a three-car garage. Flowers had been planted along the edge and there were a few climbing rose plants on the front porch. "This house is _amazing_."

"That it is," Jem chuckled as she, the Holograms, and their tour manager, Rio Pacheco, climbed out of the dark blue van. Their host and owner of the vehicle, Ryan O'Connell, climbed out as well.

"To think that we'll be spending an entire week in this house and with author Torie Cronkhite no less!" Asa exclaimed. "This is going to be so great!"

"_This_ is where Torie Cronkhite lives! You've _got_ to be kidding me!"

"Oh no," came the collective groan from the Holograms as everyone turned to see who had spoken. Behind them were the Misfits and their manager, Eric Raymond.

"Get off it, Pizzazz," Roxy chided. "She's an _author_. She can have her house however she likes it."

"Yeah," Stormer agreed. "Besides, it looks rather classy."

"And quaint," Jetta piped in. "Wonder what else there is."

"Whatever," the green-haired woman grumbled, keeping her eyes on the house itself.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Jem finally demanded, folding her arms.

"_We_ have an appointment with Ms Cronkhite," Eric stated. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"We're on vacation, _Eric_," Rio growled.

"There'll be none of that, people," Ryan interjected. "This is _my_ home as well as Torie's and I will _not_ tolerate fighting of any kind. _Especially_ around my children. I _will_ ask you to leave, family or not." His gaze landed on Rio as he said the last part. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Yeah," Rio grumbled as Eric nodded and said, "Absolutely."

"Good. Because you'll find that my wife can and _will_ be a lot worse than I can be. Now you'll follow me . . ."

Ryan turned and headed for the house. As the group followed him, Kimber kept glancing at the Misfits and couldn't help but wonder what they were up to _this_ time.

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Two days had passed since Jem and the Holograms, and Rio had started their Philadelphia vacation with Rio's cousin, Ryan O'Connell, and his family . . . and the Misfits.

Not wanting to be outdone, Pizzazz had practically begged for her band to be able to stay with them as well. Especially since Torie wouldn't put up with demanding and temper tantrums. That had become quite clear in the first five minutes of meeting the authoress. Eventually, Ryan and Torie had agreed, reluctantly, and they made sure that everyone knew to be on their best behaviour. Jem had _not_ liked the arrangement, and still didn't.

Then, the day after they had arrived, _it_ had happened.

Unbeknownst to the two bands and their managers, Ryan and Torie's oldest son, Sesshomaru, had written a review on both bands. It had been part of a project for a group called Youths For The Arts, and the group was open to youngsters eleven and older. A local paper had agreed to work with the group and to publish the reviews as soon as the teens and pre-teens turned them in. The thirteen-year-old's review had been published after their arrival. Jem still couldn't believe how scathing Sesshomaru's review got on, not just the Misfits, but the Holograms as well. When he'd been confronted by both bands on the article, Sesshomaru merely folded his arms and stated that he stood by what he wrote. Nothing would be able to change his mind. If they didn't like it, that was simply too bad. He had only written what he thought and felt. Then, just as calmly, he had turned and walked away, completely unnerving Jem in the process.

'How can anyone raise children to be like that?'

"Are you all right?"

"Hmm?" Blinking, Jem glanced up to see who had spoken. Rio stood across from her.

"Are you all right?" He sat down in the nearest chair, a concerned expression on his face.

"Oh," she smiled. "Yeah. I guess I am. It just feels strange being in this house . . ."

"Especially with the Misfits being here?"

"Yeah . . . I'm surprised that Pizzazz is even talking your cousins after that review Sesshomaru wrote."

"I know . . . Listen, I'm sorry about how things have been turning out so far," Rio stated. "I certainly didn't expect Ryan's family to be like this."

"It's okay, Rio. It isn't your fault or theirs. Ryan and Torie just have a different way of raising their children than what we're used to. Different but effective. I'm just worried about the Misfits' influence on their children."

"So am I. But everyone's trying to spend time with them, to try and counter everything the Misfits could end up doing."

"Yeah," she nodded. "We better go see how everyone's doing . . ."

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Torie shook her head, dispelling the magic of the reverie. Jem had confronted her with concerns, though she had worried over nothing in the end, especially after the way Roxy had handled Inuyasha passing out from his blood sugar acting up.

'He ended up in the hospital then as well,' she thought, brushing back his hair. 'And he'd hated it . . . He'd hated being poked every hour, on the hour . . . but that's how badly it had progressed. Oh my baby . . .'

Torie glanced at the clock then at Sesshomaru. She knew that her children would want to stay, to be there for their brother, but knew that they couldn't, either.

Sesshomaru caught her glance then nodded.

"I'll get Anna and Ryan, and head home," he murmured. "We'll be back in the morning."

"We'll call if anything changes."

Quietly, Sesshomaru slipped out of the room. Torie watched him go, her heart aching. All she had wanted for this evening was for her sons to have a good time at the dance . . . Sesshomaru's last Homecoming and Ryan and Inuyasha's first. Now it would be overshadowed by a family tragedy.

After Sesshomaru had left, the doctor, along with Officer Mike Andersen, Jade and Trysten's father, entered the room.

"Mr. and Mrs. O'Connell, we have some news . . ."

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Speed reached St. Jude's in record time. Outside the doors waited Inspector Detector.

"So glad you could meet me here," he breathed as they rushed into the hospital. "Especially on such short notice. Is it true? Did they find needles on Inuyasha or ones that belonged to him?"

"It is," the detective confirmed. "But the contents have not been identified. At least notto my knowledge. The local police haven't been too keen on me sticking my head into what they believe to be none of my business."

"Doesn't matter," Speed stated. "I just want the O'Connells to know what kind of kid it is they've raised."

"Right. He's on the third floor."

They got on an elevator and pushed the button for the third floor, missing the other three O'Connell children as they left. When they got to Inuyasha's room, Speed saw a doctor and a police officer talking to Ryan and Torie. He paused for a moment. As soon as the doctor and officer left, he approached them. Torie groaned and shook her head. Ryan glared at him.

'If looks could kill, I'd be dead right now. But they know. That officer here proves it. I was right all along.'

"Shouldn't you be at home with your children?" Torie inquired before he could say anything. "Cripes, one of their classmates left the dance in an ambulance. That couldn't have been easy for them to see."

"How would you know?" Speed snapped. "If _your_ son hadn't brought drugs to the dance, in the first place, then my kids would still be at the dance!"

Torie closed her eyes, her face becoming cold, almost expressionless.

"Mr. Racer, if you do not cease this harassment of my son, I will have a restraining order placed on you and your friend," Torie stated, her tone cool and neutral. Her husband placed his hands on her shoulders, almost in a protective manner.

"When you see your son for what he is . . ."

"_My_ son, Mr. Racer, is quiet and shy boy," she hissed. "He is a _good_ child. Always has been and always will be."

"Then why did he have those needles on him, Mrs. O'Connell?" Inspector Detector demanded. "Why does he go to a health clinic at least three times a week! Tell us that!"

"_Not_ that it's any of _your_ business but he's a diabetic. He carries the needles in a crash kit, just in case, and goes to see a diabetic manager. But then, if you weren't so narrow-minded and pig-headed and so god-damned self-righteous, you'd probably know that and you wouldn't be here when your kids need you the most. Now if you'll excuse us, our son needs us."

Torie then stormed into Inuyasha's room. Ryan's eyes hardened.

"Stay away from us if you're going to be like this," he stated calmly then followed his wife.

Speed shook his head, not quite believing everything they had said.

'The things some people will say and do for their children,' he told himself as he and Inspector Detector left the building. 'Denial can be such an ugly thing.'


	12. Wintertime Blues

Nine weeks had passed since the events of the Homecoming Dance and things were, Inuyasha noted with a happy sigh, finally getting back to normal. Or as normal as they could. He still looked over his shoulder every now and then, watching those who weren't close to him with the greatest of suspicion. It had been tough at first, going back to school, especially after he'd been in the hospital for three weeks. He'd gotten caught up on all of his assignments, thanks to his friends Jade, Trysten, Sango, and Ayumi, his brothers, and, to his surprise, Catherine Racer. Now he just had to get through his first full day back.

Inuyasha closed his locker, his books in hand along with several pieces of paper. The day had just started and he had several he needed to thank. A lot of people had sent him get-well cards, after all.

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Speed inhaled deeply as he entered his parents' home and felt his mouth tingle in anticipation. The entire house had filled with the scent of sugar and warm cinnamon. His mother was getting an early start on her Christmas baking, it smelled like.

He shrugged out of his jacket then headed for the kitchen . . . only to pause. Sitting in the kitchen with his mother was none other than Torie O'Connell.

The two women glanced up from their coffees as he walked in. Torie appeared to be upset about something, but she had quickly masked it. As soon as he appeared, she took one last drink of her coffee then got to her feet.

"Thank you for the coffee, Rachel. I'll talk to you later," she murmured, bowing slightly. She picked up a stack of brightly coloured papers then left. As soon as he heard the door close, he glared at his mother.

"What was _she_ doing here?" he demanded.

"Visiting and don't you _dare_ take that tone with me, Gregory James Racer," she snapped. "I can have anyone that I want over and not answer to you, young man."

She turned away from him. Speed as if he'd been slapped in the face. His mother had _never_ been that angry with him.

"I'm sorry," he murmured. "It was just a bit of a shock to see her here. Why didn't you call Trixie if you wanted some company?"

"Because I wanted to talk to Torie," she stated succinctly. "As she had some flyers to hand out, she was more than happy to stop by."

"Flyers? Flyers for what?"

His mother pointed to a piece of paper on the table then got up to rinse out the coffee cups. Speed picked it up to read it.

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"The annual community potluck dinner?" Trixie read aloud then stared at the woman outside her door. "What's this supposed to mean, Mrs. O'Connell?"

"Just what it means," the blonde-haired woman replied. "In two weeks, just after school lets out for Christmas break, my husband and I will be hosting our fifteenth annual banquet slash potluck dinner. It's open to everyone who lives in our neighbourhood and wants to come. Bring a dish to pass, any recipe you want to try or share. If you come and you bring a dessert with you, please make sure there's something there for the diabetics."

"Saying that because of your son?"

Greg had explained to her the night of the dance that Inuyasha was a diabetic, that his blood sugar _dropping_ had been the reason why the boy had been rushed to the hospital by ambulance. Of course, she didn't entirely believe it, and neither did Speed.

"Yeah," the older woman nodded. "And because of Mrs. Rogers, Mr. Mathey . . . Quite a few people in the neighbourhood that are diabetics, Mrs. Racer. Don't want anyone to get sick and go to the hospital, now would we?"

"No," Trixie murmured, feeling a slight pang of sympathy for the blonde-haired woman. She may not have liked the woman or cared for the fact that she let her kids do whatever they wanted, but Trixie was a mother as well. To have a child hospitalized the way Inuyasha had been . . . it had to have scared the O'Connells. "Well . . . I'll have to talk to my husband about this. No promises, though."

"No promises needed, Mrs. Racer. I'm just passing out the flyers like I normally do."

The O'Connell matriarch had just turned away when Trixie called out, "Why?"

"Why what?" Torie O'Connell looked back at her.

"Why are you doing this?" Trixie inquired.

"To celebrate the day Sesshomaru and Inuyasha came into our lives," she replied. "Plus it gives the kids something to do and to look forward to. It's also where we decide to do other activities as well, like planning skiing and sledding trips, caroling, and art workshops. Things like that. Winter can be rather harsh if all you really have to look forward to is Christmas."

"I mean why are you doing this? Giving a flyer to me?"

"Oh . . . because it isn't right to exclude someone simply because you disagree with them, Mrs. Racer. Besides, it's the holiday season. A time to forgive."

"That makes sense . . ." she trailed off, feeling rather low.

"Yeah . . . I have more of these to deliver . . . Take care."

With that, Torie O'Connell trudged down the walkway back to the sidewalk, blue flyers in hand. To Trixie, it seemed as if the older woman walked with a great weight on her shoulders.

'Can't think about that now,' she told herself as she closed the door, flyer in hand.

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"I'm fine," came the soft declaration. Ryan sighed. As usual, his wife was being her ornery and stubborn self.

'No wonder our children can be so pig-headed,' he thought darkly. 'Between the two of us, they've had perfect examples set.'

"That may be," he murmured, wrapping his arms around her waist, "but I've already made the appointment for you and one for me."

"You made the appointment for me already? I don't recall agreeing to that."

"Yes, you did," he winked.

"Oh really?"

"Yes," he nodded. "I believe it was when you said you'd be mine, for better or for worse. In sickness and in health."

"Oy," Torie sighed and shook her head. He smiled a little then nuzzled her nose.

"I know. I'm being a smart ass. I'm sorry if you don't like the fact that I made the appointment but I'm worried about you. You've been a little off lately, have been since before the Racers moved into the area. You're constantly exhausted, you haven't been feeling well, and you're crankier than normal. I just . . . I just want to be sure that you're okay." Ryan pulled her close. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"You'd rejoice. That's what you'd do. 'Thank the gods, she's gone!'" Torie teased then sighed as well. "Have I really been that difficult lately?"

"No so much around the kids, but yeah. You have," he stated gently. "It's like you're becoming depressed or something."

"So that means I'm not getting out of this, am I?"

"Nope. Not at all."

"Fine, fine, I'll go. Especially if you're going to just end up _dragging_ me there anyway."

"You know me," he chuckled. "Now . . . about the potluck flyers. I was thinking . . ."

"They're done," Torie interrupted, frowning.

"What?"

"They're done," she repeated. "I passed them out this morning and this afternoon."

"How can they be done?" he inquired. "I have drawn out the initial designs yet."

"Yeah, you did." Her frown deepened. "They were on the table. I saw them last night, and I chose the one with the calligraphy . . ."

"Calligraphy?"

"Yeah . . . the one with the calligraphy . . ."

"But I don't . . ."

They stared at each other for a moment, both stunned at each other's revelations. Then they nodded, smiling a little, and spoke as one.

"Inuyasha."

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"So are we going to go?"

"Go? Go where?" Speed murmured absently. It had been a week and a half since Torie had handed out the flyers and two since the schools had let out for Christmas break. Already, his children were restless, and searching for something to do.

"To the potluck, of course!" Greg chirped. "It's tomorrow night, you know. Sesshomaru was telling me all about it on the last day of class."

"Oh? And what was he saying about it?"

"Well, he said that his parents have been doing this since they adopted him and Inuyasha fifteen years ago. That it's their way of celebrating the anniversary of the adoptions being finalized."

_That_ caught Speed's attention. Sesshomaru and Inuyasha had been _adopted_ by Ryan and Torie O'Connell?

"Sesshomaru told you that?"

"Yeah. I asked him about it after I saw the flyer. He told me that Inuyasha had only been a few weeks old and he close to four when their parents died in a car crash. They had no living family left so they'd been placed in a foster home and up for adoption. The papers went through quickly, thanks to an aunt that works for the agency, and they came to the U.S. a week before Christmas."

"They came to the U.S.?"

"Yep. From Tokyo," Greg nodded.

"I see . . ."

Speed mulled his newfound information over in his mind. There was a tiny world of possibilities floating around and all of them ended with the fifteen-year-old Inuyasha being deported.

'But his parents love him,' a tiny voice whispered, 'and they'll fight to keep him. They're the only parents he's ever known. To have him be deported, or even attempt it, would be to rip him from the only family that he has ever known and will ever consider to be his family. And it'll make you the most hated person in the neighbourhood. It would be unwise to use this information. As sure as it's wintertime right now, it _will_ backfire in your face."

'True,' he conceded to himself. 'As much as I dislike the kid, I can't tear him from the only family he's ever known. That would be too cruel. I couldn't do it. Not to anyone. But I can go to this banquet and keep an eye on Inuyasha. Make sure he knows that I'm watching him and that I won't stand for any of his deceptions. Plus, it'll give the kids something to do, if only for one night. At least Greg, Catherine, and Taylor will enjoy it. Danielle's another story.'

"Sure," he finally relented. "Go tell your mother that we're going to the potluck tomorrow night."

"Really?"

"Really. Now go tell your mother."

"Yes, sir!"

Greg dashed off, leaving Speed to chuckle. The things he'd do to keep his kids entertained, if only for one night.

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"Wow," Sparky breathed. "This is supposed to be a potluck dinner?"

The entire Racer family, along with Sparky and Janine, had just entered the high school gymnasium where Ryan and Torie were hosting their winter party. The room had been decorated with blue and silver streamers and balloons. Tables had been set up everywhere, including four long tables where the food was being placed. And a large crowd had already begun to gather. All six members of the O'Connell household could be seen greeting and chattering with the guests. Trixie smiled as she made her way to the buffet table with her youngest daughter and her mother-in-law.

'It isn't Farmington Hills, but it's starting feel a little like home. I hope there are more gatherings like this throughout the winter. What a great way to shake off the blahs.'


	13. A Valentine's Gift

There weren't that many holidays that Inuyasha could say that he truly detested. Christmas was okay. His mother had instilled in him, and his siblings, that it was more about spending time with family and friends rather than the gifts or candy. Plus, they tended to celebrate Yule rather than Christmas. And Halloween wasn't too bad, either. He'd always enjoyed dressing up in something that people would never expect him to be, and the neighbours, when he'd still been little enough to go trick-or-treating, had made sure to have sugar-free candy for him. But other holidays, such as Valentine's Day and Easter, he didn't care too much for. They held no real significance for him, given that they both seemed to revolve around making the candy companies richer than what they needed to be.

'I hate being a diabetic,' he groused as he made his way down the halls of West Hall. Around him, girls were chattering excitedly about the upcoming Valentine's dance, the dates they would be having with their boyfriends, and what kinds of gifts they were going to get their beaus. 'Though I guess I should ask Dad to take me shopping for gifts. Just because I don't like the holiday doesn't mean I have to take it out on everyone else. I should at least find something for Mom, Jade, and Trysten. I can make my cards.'

He had just reached his locker when one of the new English teachers approached him and leaned against his neighbour's locker.

"Mr. O'Connell . . ."

Inuyasha tilted his head to see Rex Racer, Speed Racer's older brother, next to him. He nodded.

"Mr. Racer."

"Why haven't you been in class? We're almost six weeks into the semester and you've only shown up for one session. Is there something wrong?" the teacher inquired.

"No," Inuyasha shook his head. "I thought the administration had told you. I'm being home-schooled by my mom for English. There was another class that I wanted to take."

"Was this before or after the first day of class?" Mr. Racer frowned and folded his arms.

"Before," he replied, giving the teacher an odd look. "The school insisted that I attended that first class before they'd switched classes for me. That way, they had a little more time to get the test results."

"I see . . . So your mother's teaching you? Is she qualified?"

"Yeah. She is. She's got a Bachelor's in English with a minor in Education . . . Now, if you'll excuse me, Mr. Racer, but I have to get to class before I'm late."

Inuyasha grabbed his books then sidestepped the teacher. For some reason, it didn't surprise him that one of the new English teachers would question his decision to test out of English, especially the fact that it was Speed Racer's older brother doing the questioning. If they didn't know his mother, then they doubted her abilities.

'I just hope this doesn't become an issue,' he prayed as he entered his next class.

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Trixie glared at her husband's back. Her second favourite holiday, Valentine's Day, was just around the corner, and all _he_ wanted to do was bitch about Inuyasha O'Connell with Rex. Her fists clenched, she whirled around and headed for the door. Fifteen minutes later, she was parking her car at the mall and getting out.

'Sometimes I wish we'd never moved here,' she fumed as she entered through the _fye_ entrance. 'This is getting to be ridiculous.'

As she headed for the main portion of the mall, she passed by the wedding music selection. Trixie paused then smiled before thumbing through the CDs.

"They're all the same," a young voice commented. Startled, Trixie glanced up to see Inuyasha O'Connell off to her left, and he was smiling rather brightly.

"What are you doing here?" she blurted out.

"Doing some shopping," he replied with a shrug. "Got some Valentine's gifts to buy."

"Really?" Surprise continued to wash over her as she inspected him closer. Several bags already hung off his arm. "Looks like you've done quite a bit already."

"Yeah . . . Just trying to find something for my mom."

"Oh . . . I see . . . Would . . . would you like some help?"

"No thanks," he grinned. "Doesn't really make any sense to buy her CDs. She practically has everything imaginable."

"I can imagine," Trixie smiled. "Are you here by yourself, Inuyasha?"

"No. My dad's here. He's picking up some art supplies so we can make our own Valentine's cards."

"That's sweet of him . . . Sweet of you, too."

"Thanks . . . I really hate the holiday, though."

"Why's that?"

"Because there isn't a lot about it that I can really enjoy," he sighed. "I'm not really into flowers and I can't have that much candy, even if it's sugar-free. It just . . . it just feels like it's really more about how the candy companies can make a buck."

"There isn't anything you like about Valentine's Day?"

"Not really," Inuyasha shrugged. "Well, maybe _one_ thing."

"And what's that?"

"The way my mother smiles," came the answer. "My dad proposed to her on that day. They tend to get a little silly about it."

"A lot of people get proposed to on Valentine's Day. And a lot of people get married on that day as well," Trixie stated.

"But not many send their intended on a treasure hunt, take them to a romantic Japanese dinner, and propose on a stage in front of a large crowd while attending a concert of a mutual favourite band," a second voice replied. "I just happened to get lucky that day when she said yes and didn't kill me for such extravagant lengths."

Trixie glanced up to see Ryan O'Connell standing behind his son, a broad smile on his face. He clasped his youngest son's shoulder.

"I guess you did," she chuckled. As she gazed at them, she remembered a piece of paper that Catherine had come home with a few months prior. It had been a "thank you" card, hand-drawn. When she'd asked her daughter about it, as the artwork had been outstanding, Catherine had shrugged and merely stated that it was from Inuyasha.

"We need to hurry before your mother starts to get ideas," Ryan told Inuyasha, breaking into Trixie's small reverie. Then he looked at her, and bowed his head. "It was a pleasure running into you, Mrs. Racer."

"Likewise. And, please, call me Trixie." Her gaze moved to Inuyasha. "Could you do something for me, Inuyasha?"

"What's that?"

"Would you draw a Valentine's card for me for my husband?" she inquired softly. "I'll have Catherine give you the instructions as to what I would like to be on it and what I want it to say. I know you have some classes with her."

"I suppose I could," he frowned. "But won't your husband be upset about it?"

"You mean that I asked you to draw a card for me?" At the boy's nod, Trixie shrugged. "Don't worry about it. I'll deal with Speed on this. Besides, I want to give him something different, something he won't be expecting . . . and that'll let him know just how much he means to me."

"I think I can do that," Inuyasha nodded thoughtfully. "I was going to do some drawing tonight anyways . . . I'll give Catherine what I've done and you can pick which one you like the best."

"Sounds good to me," she smiled. They said their goodbyes and Trixie went back to browsing through the wedding CDs. Talking with Ryan and Inuyasha had given her some inspiration as to what she could do to surprise her husband and make it a Valentine's Day that neither of them would forget.


	14. Spring Break

insert lyrics from Dropkick Murphys song,_A Few Good Men_

Speed glanced at the O'Connell house as he and Rex drove by. Since the kids were out for spring vacation, many of the younger students who didn't have jobs were really living it up. Some families had actually left for the week, heading for warmer climates. Apparently, the O'Connells were not among them, if the loudness of their stereo system was any indication. Letting out a sigh of irritation, he pulled over and killed the engine. His brother gave him a bit of a worried glance.

"You all right, Speed?"

"Yeah," he grumbled. "I'm just getting really sick of this neighbourhood. That's all."

"You mean you're getting sick of Ryan and Torie O'Connell and their son, Inuyasha," Rex pointed out, grinning some. "It isn't the neighbourhood at large. Just them."

"_That_ would be an understatement," Speed growled as he climbed out of his car. "Parents probably aren't even home and they've got the stereo up loud."

"There are two cars missing," Rex conceded, getting out as well.

"It isn't going to last . . . how's it going with the school? They still easing up on their decision to let Inuyasha skip English like that?" he inquired as they walked to the front door.

"I have no reason to complain, they keep telling me," came the reply. "Because his mother has a degree in English and in education, they say she's allowed to home-school her kids as she sees fit, that she doesn't even have to send her kids _to_ school. Torie and her husband are obviously very qualified to be teaching."

"Keep trying," Speed stated as they reached the front door. "They're bound to realize that it isn't right for Inuyasha to be skipping an important class like that."

He knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer. From inside, the curtains moved to the side a little, and the volume of the music went down. Ready to chew out whichever child answered the door as the knob started to turn, Speed began to open his mouth then immediately shut it. Before him stood Torie.

"Mr. Racer," she smiled, her tone sarcastically cheerful. "What brings you by on this lovely spring day?"

"I heard the music . . ."

"Ah, yes," she chuckled. "Dropkick Murphys. Good Irish band. So is Flogging Molly."

"You know these bands?" he blinked, his jaw dropping some.

"Of course," came the glib reply. "My kids are old enough now that I feel somewhat safer playing it around them. Is that the only thing that caused you to stop by?"

"It was a bit loud," he offered lamely. "You listen to this?"

"Yeah, I do. Have for years. Why? Did you think it was my kids listening to it behind my back?"

"Er, well . . ."

"Mr. Racer," she shook her head, folding her arms in front of her, "you need to stop worrying about what _my_ children are up to and worry about your own. You don't see me fretting about yours or telling you how to raise them. I'd appreciate it if you'd show me the same courtesy. Okay? Now, if that's all, I have work to do. Good day, gentlemen."

She then turned her back and closed the door, leaving Speed gawking, stupefied, at it. Once more, the O'Connell matriarch had managed to completely blow him off.

"Let's go, Speed," Rex murmured. "Before she decides we're harassing her and her family."

"Yeah," he muttered as they walked back to his car. As he climbed back in, he glanced back at the house. "Is it just me or did it look like she's been putting on weight?"

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Trixie opened the door to see a woman with long, pink hair standing on the other side. A huge grin broke out across her face and she immediately hugged her.

"I can't believe!" she exclaimed. "You came!"

"Of course, I did," the other woman chuckled as she stepped inside. "You sounded so frazzled that I got on the first flight. What's going on?"

"It's this neighbourhood," Trixie sighed. "Jem, I don't know. Everything's starting to repeat itself all over again."

"You mean the whole situation with Speed and the goth kids?"

"Yeah . . . I mean, in Farmington Hills, it wasn't hard to see his point about them. And it still isn't. He just gets so obsessive, especially when there's one family that won't listen to him."

"I can understand how he feels," Jem nodded sympathetically. She shrugged out of her jacket, and Trixie hung it up. "But not all goth kids are like that."

"Don't let him hear you say that. Especially right now," Trixie shook her head. They made their way into the kitchen and she began to make them some coffee.

"Do you know who he has singled out in this neighbourhood?" Jem inquired.

"Yeah. A kid by the name of Inuyasha O'Connell."

"Inuyasha O'Connell?" the rock star blurted out, her eyes wide. "As in the son of author Torie Cronkhite and illustrator Ryan O'Connell? _That_ Inuyasha O'Connell?"

"I guess," Trixie frowned then her eyes narrowed. "You mean to tell me that they're both famous?"

"Not just famous," Jem breathed. "But influential. _Very_ influential, especially in this area. They own at least six houses and six businesses on top of their professional careers. Both are active in the community, especially with their kids' school. They're not a family you want to go up against unless you have everything you need to fight with. If you don't and there's a good chance that they can prove you wrong, they will do it. Ryan and Torie are not afraid to stand up to anyone."

"You've encountered them?"

"You could say that," came the nod. "Our road manager, Rio Pacheco, is related to Ryan. They're cousins. About six years ago, for a vacation, we stayed with them for a week."

"And Inuyasha was a problem then?"

"No," Jem shook her head. "Inuyasha's actually a very quiet kid. I felt bad for him, especially when he was hospitalized for the rest of the week we were there. His blood sugar had sky-rocketed, and he'd passed out. He'd have hit the floor hard if it hadn't been for Roxy standing behind him and catching him."

"Roxy? From the Misfits? And he really _is_ a diabetic?"

"Yeah, Roxy from the Misfits, and, yes, Inuyasha is a diabetic. Has to check his blood sugar every hour on the hour, or at least he used to. Roxy had taken a liking to him because he'd helped her with her guitar one day . . . the O'Connell kids don't impress easily, thanks to their parents' celebrity status. But, as I said about our week there, Inuyasha wasn't the problem. It was Sesshomaru."

"The oldest boy? But he's . . ."

"Such a good kid? So calm and collected?" Jem finished for her. "Yeah. That he is. He's also been told repeatedly that an insult to any of his brothers is an insult to him and to his family. And he can be just as opinionated and as stubborn as both of his parents. Those kids have perfect examples to follow if they want to dig their heels into the ground about something."

"What exactly happened?" Trixie inquired. The coffee had finished so she poured them both a cup.

"Well, it started a few days after we'd arrived . . ."

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"Man, this place is busy," Speed whispered as they pulled into the parking lot. "I can't believe Sparky and Janine want to meet us here. I hope that their food is as good as people make it out to be."

"Agreed," Rex nodded as the car came to a stop, and they got out.

The restaurant in question was a Japanese steakhouse called Tsukiyo. On a whim, Sparky had taken Janine there for Valentine's Day. Both had declared that the food there was absolutely delicious, and had insisted on taking Speed and Rex there. It had taken some time but they'd managed to convince the two brothers to join them for lunch. The couple stood up as the brothers entered. Sparky immediately shook hands with Speed.

"So glad you could make it," the red-haired man enthused. "You're going to _love_ this place. Best Japanese food you'll ever eat . . . next to being in Japan, of course."

"Of course,"Speed chuckled. "What's the name mean?"

"It means 'moonlit night,'" a young voice stated. Wide-eyed, Speed looked at the young man who had spoken. Before him stood Inuyasha O'Connell.

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Sparky shook his head then leaned next to Speed.

"Relax, will you? He's been here all day," he stated quietly. "He works here part-time."

"Who the hell would hire that kid?" Speed growled under his breath. Sparky fought back a sigh, grateful Janine had gone to use the ladies' room for this little exchange. His fiancee absolutely detested Speed's attitude towards kids who simply wanted to be different.

"Uh, the owner," Sparky murmured. "His parents _own_ this restaurant, one of many businesses throughout the community."

"They what?"

"They own it," he repeated. "I saw Mr. O'Connell in here earlier, checking in on his employees. And the kid _has_ got that Oriental look to work here."

"Because he's full Japanese," Speed hissed. "Ryan and Torie adopted him fifteen years ago."

"Speed," he began when Rex refused to butt into the conversation, "you have got to _relax_. Going after this kid is only going to get you into trouble. Again. Do you really want that to happen?"

"No . . ."

"Then just relax. He's fifteen. He isn't doing anything wrong by being here and working for his parents. I don't want to get kicked out of here simply because you detest the kid."

"Hey, guys!" Janine chirped as she approached, interrupting any further conversation. "Have I missed anything exciting?"

"Not at all," Sparky beamed at her as she sat back down. "I placed your order for you. Same thing as you had last time."

"Oh, thank you, sweetie," she murmured, kissing him. "That's sweet of you."

"You're welcome. You know I'd do anything for you, babe."

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Inuyasha fought back a sigh as he ducked out of a certain patron's sight. Except for at the community banquet in December, Speed Racer had never looked kindly at him. It had never bothered him but then the incident at the Homecoming Dance had happened. He'd heard everything that the Racer patriarch had said about him. Greg, who'd become a fast friend of his, told him, and it rattled him to think that someone could choose to be so dense about a medical condition. Not for the first time, Inuyasha thought that maybe, just maybe, Speed had had something to do with those three guys attacking him at the dance and nearly killing him.

'No,' he shook his head as he grabbed a bunch of menus. 'That's ludicrous. Why would he want to do that? That wouldn't ruin just his kids' night but everyone else's night as well. It doesn't make any sense . . . but who would do that? And why? I just don't get it. I haven't done anything to anyone . . . Stop thinking about it! What's done is done!'

Inuyasha felt his hands trembling some then he took a deep breath. He had a job to do. His parents weren't paying him to do nothing. Smiling, he led the next group of customers to their table, and made a mental note to talk to his mother about the way he'd been feeling once he got home. He wanted to enjoy his spring vacation, after all.


	15. To Tell the Truth

Torie shook her head then sighed as she closed the door. Speed Racer was becoming more of a pain than all four of her children combined had ever been. He just wouldn't get it out of his head that her son was a trouble-maker. Still . . . it _had_ been somewhat hilarious to see his expression when she'd told him that _she_ was the playing the music loud.

'If only he knew . . .'

Straightening her shoulders, she strode back into her kitchen then smiled at her guests, a group consisting of five men, a five-year-old boy, and a woman. Anna had gone with Ryan to work that day. To relieve her boredom, the young girl had said. Torie figured it had more to do with getting out of cleaning her room and doing some chores than relieving any boredom. Her children were not idle. She made sure of it.

"Very sorry about that," she stated, bowing slightly. "Nosy neighbour. Now that you've heard some Dropkick Murphys and have gotten it out of your system, Yuki, you were saying?"

"Well," one of the blonde-haired men began, smirking a little, "I want to try something different for my next novel, something that isn't romantic, something that'll bring in a larger audience . . . I know it'd be a shock to my readers . . . but I was thinking that you and I could possibly work on a collaboration piece together."

"A collaboration piece?" Torie echoed. "You mean the great Eiri Yuki actually wants to collaborate on a book?"

"Don't get too excited," he grumbled. "I just want to try something new."

"What'd you have in mind?"

His eyes lit up and he smiled, leaning forward.

"You're not going to believe it when you hear it, Torie. Not in a million years."

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Greg sat in his room, staring out the window. From where he was, he could see most of the neighbourhood, including the O'Connell house. Not that it was hard to miss. Theirs was the only historic, five-story house in the entire neighbourhood.

Of course, when he'd discovered who Inuyasha's parents were, Greg had felt more than a little humbled. Torie Cronkhite had always been one of his favourite authors, ever since he'd been old enough to read. The fact that she had a wide range of stories for a wide range of people had suited him . . . and inspired him. He'd even gone out of his way to read the works that had inspired her to write, and seeing a lot of the influences. She was simply amazing when it came to writing. His uncle Rex couldn't even compare.

As he gazed at the pristine white house, a twinge of jealousy stabbed at him.

'It isn't fair . . . how the hell did Inuyasha get so lucky? _His_ parents don't care if he dresses in all back. _His_ parents don't care if he doesn't play sports and be the hero of the family. He's allowed to be who he wants to be . . .'

Then Greg shook his head. Inuyasha wasn't his problem, nor were his parents. If anything, he really liked them. Sure, Inuyasha's mother had given him the dirtiest of looks the first time he'd gone over there until he'd opened up about the "reason" why he'd shoved her baby boy into a locker. After that, she'd given him a bit of a chance and been a little more accepting of him . . . unlike his father had been of Inuyasha. Thinking of his father sobered him up rather quickly. He loved his father. He truly did. But there were times his dad was too overzealous for his own good.

'One day, Dad's going to go too far with his accusations . . . if he hasn't already . . . This neighbourhood . . . they're not like the people of our old home. They're not going to take him acting like a big shot . . . or a child expert. They don't care about last names . . . unless it's O'Connell and even then they don't seem to care . . .'

Shaking his head to tear himself away from his current thought circle, Greg moved away from the window and went back to his desk. He had a stack of papers to go through – applications to fill out and open house invitations to address – and they weren't going to take care of themselves. His parents would probably throw a fit if they knew about the applications but he didn't care. They weren't in Farmington Hills anymore. He couldn't rest his laurels on the family name . . . not when people didn't care.

'One day,' he told himself, 'one day, when Dad's finally gotten it into his head that not all goth kids are bad, I'll tell him and Mom the truth . . . one day.'

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'I can't wait for spring vacation to be over,' Sesshomaru groused as he drove to Tsukiyo to pick up his younger brothers. He'd just finished his shift at the Diamond Cinema Complex and, for the first time in his life, he was actually grateful to be leaving work. 'That girl is going to be the end of my sanity. I just know it.'

The girl in question was Danielle Racer. Ever since she'd learned of where he worked, she'd been there constantly, smiling at him and flirting. He'd hoped that, by ignoring her as much as possible, she'd get the hint and leave him alone. He'd hoped that, every time he wrapped his girlfriend and gave Austen a kiss, she'd understand that he wasn't interested in her and didn't want her. It had gotten to the point where he hid in the backroom or begged to start the projectors. Anything to get him out of Danielle's sights or make it look like he wasn't at work that day.

'It just isn't working. There's got to be something else that I can do to get my point across,' he sighed as he parked his car then entered the building. Little Ryan was finishing up with some customers but Inuyasha was nowhere in sight. Sesshomaru frowned. Normally, it was always Inuyasha who ran the register. The customers liked him better, for some reason.

'Has to be his eyes,' Sesshomaru had often mused. 'They're always grabbing other people's attentions. And he's always courteous, no matter what.'

As a group of customers passed by him to leave, one of them glanced at him.

"Sesshomaru O'Connell?" came the inquiry. He did a bit of a double-take then fought back a groan. Of all the people he had to run into at that moment, it had to be Danielle's father.

"Mr. Racer," Sesshomaru gave a curt nod.

"Please," the older man smiled, "call me Speed. Do you have a moment?"

Sesshomaru hesitated. He _did_ have a moment while he waited for his brothers but he didn't exactly want to tell the Racer patriarch that. However, he also didn't have a plausible excuse to get away from the man. Speed would insist.

"Yes," he nodded. "I have a moment. What is it?"

"It's about my daughter, Danielle . . ."

"What about her?" Sesshomaru inquired coolly, his back becoming stiff. The inquiry came as a bit of a surprise but not by much. Like most parents were with their children, Speed was probably fooled by his daughter's character. Sesshomaru had noticed the way she acted at the winter potluck. She'd been very polite to everyone when her parents were watching. But behind their backs . . . the girl was completely something else.

"Well, I was wondering why you haven't asked her out on a date," the man confessed softly. "She's quite taken with you. You're all she really talks about."

"I see . . . She hasn't mentioned the fact that I already have a girlfriend?"

"No . . ." Mr. Racer blinked.

"And she hasn't mentioned the fact that she constantly is talking about my youngest brother and trying to run his name into the ground?"

"No . . ."

"You might want to ask her about that then," Sesshomaru stated.

"Sesshomaru . . ." he began.

"Mr. Racer, if you're going to start in about my brother, I don't want to hear it. I do believe I know him better than what either you or Danielle do. I've known him longer."

"Is that the real reason why you won't talk to her?" Speed demanded quietly, his tone shaded with hints of rage.

"Honestly, Mr. Racer? It is the _main_ reason why I won't talk to her. He is my brother and the only real living relative I have left. If it hadn't been for my adoptive parents, I wouldn't even know who he is or have the family that I do. An insult to him is an insult to me. That's just how it is. I will protect him with everything that I have. And I don't want to hear from you as to why I should give your daughter a chance. Both of you refuse to give my brother a chance. Both of you refuse to listen. I'm just returning the favour. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to find out what's taking both of my brothers so long."

Sesshomaru jerked his arm away and immediately headed for the kitchens, where he knew the older man wouldn't be allowed. Some people just didn't like to listen.

888888888

Trixie stared at her coffee, the story Jem had just told her slowly sinking in. Things were starting to become a little clearer for her, but some things still remained out of her reach, like why the O'Connells would allow their son to dress in such a manner that people would accuse him of being a trouble-maker. Granted, Speed was the only one accusing him, but it still baffled her. Why didn't they simply make him wear something else?

"Speed's been trying to tell Ryan and Torie that Inuyasha's a trouble-maker, hasn't he?"

"Yeah," Trixie nodded, her voice soft. "But they haven't been listening to him. Quite honestly, I'm getting tired of his tirades. So's Catherine. She can't believe it about him, especially when he helps her with her English homework."

"He's taking English?"

"Not this semester, apparently. But he's been tutoring her. Has since we moved here. She's told me he explains the assignments better than what her own uncle does. I find it to be surprising, to say the least."

"Doesn't surprise me," Jem murmured. "Torie has a Masters in English. She's taught her kids well. And she really isn't a bad person. She just seems that way. You, of all people, should understand what it's like to want to protect your children."

"Yeah . . . that I do. That I do."

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"So what do you say, Torie?" Yuki inquired, leaning forward. "Tell me the truth."

"You have me tempted," she admitted. "I wasn't expecting anything like this. Especially from you, Yuki Eiri."

"Tempted," he smirked. "That's always good thing."

"Yeah . . ."

The phone rang, cutting her off. Sighing and shaking her head, Torie excused herself once more, and answered it.

"Hello?"

"_Hello . . . may I speak to Torie O'Connell please?"_ a female voice inquired.

"This is she . . ."

"_Mrs. O'Connell, I know you don't know who I am and I know that I don't know you very well. But this is a matter of great importance . . . it has to do with Speed Racer . . ."_


	16. A Secret is a Secret

Danielle let out a frustrated sigh as she made her way to the car she borrowed from her mother. Spring vacation had only just begun. She wasn't supposed to be feeling like this. Spring vacation was a time for fun, relaxation, and for love. In other words, she wanted Sesshomaru O'Connell to stop pretending he didn't see her and to fall in love with her. If he wasn't already, that was.

'He has to be,' she told herself. 'Otherwise he wouldn't be ignoring me. He's just pretending he's upset with about what I've been saying about Inuyasha. He's just pretending he's in love with Austen Sanchez. There's no way he could be in love with that bimbo. What does she have that I don't have?'

She smiled a little to herself, content with her thoughts. Everything made sense to her, after all. She couldn't see why else Sesshomaru would be ignoring her.

'I'll talk with Mom about what I can do to really get his attention.'

Danielle reached the car and climbed in. She'd do whatever it would take to get her point across, of course. She was an intelligent and beautiful young woman. Her father always told her as much. What guy wouldn't want her?

As she left the Cinema, Danielle couldn't help but smile. She had many secrets, secrets that not even her twin brother knew about. And she wasn't as blind as people thought her to be, either. Danielle knew things. She knew things that people wouldn't have expected her to know . . . like how her twin just happened to be into the whole goth scene and a practicing pagan. She'd seen him sneak in when he thought no one was looking, she'd found his make-up and his books . . . stuff he'd actually left behind in Farmington Hills.

'Pity,' she thought, pulling into traffic. 'That would have been great ammunition to blackmail him with. Of course, the expression on Dad's voice would be priceless, too.'

Still, it hadn't been something she could bring herself to do. Greg was her brother and she loved him. She understood that their father had put a lot of pressure on her twin. He was the oldest son, therefore expected to follow in his footsteps. Their father wanted a third generation Racer, and Greg was it.

'I couldn't do anything to hurt him . . . not like that. It isn't for me to tell Mom and Dad, anyway. It's Greg's decision. Now Inuyasha O'Connell, on the other hand . . .'

The youngest O'Connell boy really had been a bit of a source of entertainment for her. So quiet. So shy. Really nothing like what their father said he was. Certainly not a drug addict, anyway. She'd almost felt remorse for what had happened to the freshman at the Homecoming Dance, having sent some old friends of hers after him to begin with. She hadn't expected him to truly be a diabetic. That night had been scary and she thought for sure her friends would rat her out. But they'd never been caught. The finger never got pointed at her. For that, she was grateful.

'Not that they'd be able to prove anything anyway,' she chuckled.

She slowed to a stop as traffic got thicker and became impossible to get through. It didn't matter, anyway. Danielle had plenty of time. It _was_ spring vacation, after all.

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Torie listened in shocked silence to the woman on the other end of the phone. It was simply unbelievable, everything that came from this woman. From Speed Racer's harassment to her daughter finally having a nervous breakdown. Every little sordid detail, and, according to this woman, she wasn't the only one to have suffered from Speed's bullying. Other families had as well. Finally, the woman ended, leaving her the name and number of a person who could verify everything she had told Torie. Then she hung up, leaving the O'Connell matriarch somewhat exhausted.

"Everything all right?" Yuki inquired, glancing at her in concern. It may not have appeared that way to anyone else but she knew the man, had been close friends with him for a few years now. Torie knew he often used rude tones and sarcastic remarks to cover up his concern. It was just how he was after everything that happened in New York, whatever that had been . . . She glanced at her guests then nodded.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Just wasn't expecting a phone call like that," she murmured.

"Anything we can help you with?"

"No," Torie shook her head. "It's my fight. I'm not involving anyone else. As it is, if things continue the way they are, it's going to get ugly. Very ugly. Ryan and I may have to relocate ourselves and the kids to the farmhouse just to avoid the tabloids. The last thing I want is for my kids to be plastered all over the front page news. Bad enough I'm already pregnant and having to deal with this."

She let out an exhausted sigh and shook her head.

"There has to be a better way to get my point across. I shouldn't have to stoop to his level."

"What do you mean?" Yuki leaned forward, as did everyone else at the table. The five-year-old, Michael Winchester, had thankfully fallen asleep and was now resting on the couch. Everyone there already knew of her troubles with the Racer family . . . at least, with Speed.

"I mean I'm not going to hire or call someone to follow Speed or his family around and to start digging into their past. I shouldn't have to," Torie stated firmly. "That would be like someone doing that to you, Yuki."

"Yeah," he nodded. "Though I daresay it's already been done to me . . ."

"Oh hush," she admonished. "You know what I mean."

"If you mean by someone investigating Shuichi rather than me, yeah, I do," Yuki nodded with a sigh. "Still, if there's anything we can do . . ."

"No," Torie shook her head. "I'll let Speed Racer hang himself with his own rope. The more he goes after my son, the more that noose tightens. Now let's get back to business. You said you wanted to collaborate with me, do something different. I accept. Now I have a question for you. Would you like Ryan to illustrate the book or Inuyasha?"

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Speed sighed as he drove back to his home. He hadn't expected to run into Sesshomaru O'Connell at Tsukiyo at all, and he certainly hadn't expected the young man's words to hit him as hard as a dull knife would. Given the display he'd seen at the restaurant, the O'Connell family was definitely a close-knit family.

'But not like mine,' he thought, glancing at his brother. Pride swelled deeply within him. 'At least my family doesn't keep secrets from each other. Not like the O'Connells. Inuyasha has them all fooled. They're going to find out the hard way about that boy. I guarantee it.'

His house came into view and Speed smiled. He loved his family. He'd do anything for them. Anything. As he pulled into his driveway, an idea came to him. Something he hadn't done in a long time.

'Maybe tonight I can get Greg to watch Catherine and Taylor so I can take Trixie out. Danielle's old enough to take care of herself. And they might enjoy having the house to themselves for a few hours.'

"What are you thinking?" Rex inquired. Speed gave him a sideways glance then grinned.

"I'm thinking about surprising my wife. Sparky was right. That place has good food."

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"Hey, Kagome . . ."

"Yeah, Sango?" The young miko pushed herself up, glancing at her best friend. She'd been thinking a lot lately about Inuyasha and his reincarnation, and had been trying to figure out how to remind him of who she was and what they had shared together. Sango was with her mostly to listen and maybe even suggest something. But it was her problem. Kagome wanted to solve it on her own to the absolute best of her abilities. When she saw the troubled look on the former taijiya's face, Kagome frowned. "What is it?"

"I sense a demonic aura close by," she murmured. "Very close by. I don't like it."

Kagome closed her eyes for a moment and allowed her senses to roam freely. She'd discovered that, by doing this, she could sense youkai auras better than what either Sango or Miroku could.

At first, she hadn't detected anything. All she'd been able to sense was the world outside and nothing more. Kagome had been ready to just shrug it off when she felt it. The aura itself had a very familiar tinge to it and her eyes flew open when she realized exactly where it was. She bolted off her head and dashed down the stairs, Sango right behind her. Souta was already at the door, getting ready to open it.

"I'll get it," Kagome told him. "Go back to watching Pokemon."

"But . . ."

"Just go," she smiled. "I can take care of it."

"All right," he murmured before shuffling back into the living room. Kagome watched him and noted how Kirara stood on the back of the couch, her posture rigid. Kohaku and Miroku were also standing there, both of their stances defensive. Nodding, she glanced through the peephole then carefully opened the door. On the other side stood a woman with dark hair that had been pulled up. Dark glasses covered her eyes. As the door opened, she smiled and removed the shades.

"Hello, Kagome."

"Kagura," she nodded curtly. "What are you doing here?"

"I was in the neighbourhood," came the nonchalant reply. "May I come in? There's something I need to talk to you about."

"I think we've said everything we've needed to say," Kagome murmured. "We appreciate the help that you gave us in the past but there isn't anything else that . . ."

She started to close the door when the wind demoness spoke up again.

"You've met their reincarnations, haven't you? Inuyasha, Sesshomaru, Naraku, and Kanna . . ."

Kagome paused, her eyes widening. Kagura nodded some.

"Yes, I know about their reincarnations. Just like I know about the new reincarnation that's coming to the O'Connell clan. May I come in? Like I said, there's something I need to talk to you about."

Numbly, Kagome stepped to one side and allowed the sorceress in. Kagura glanced around and nodded appreciatively.

"Not bad," she murmured. "I'm glad to see the money I saved up over the centuries has been well spent."

"What?"

Kagura folded her sunglasses as she closed the door behind her.

"The reason why you're here . . . when I realized that you were from the future and that Sango and her brother, Miroku, and Rin were coming to live with you in this time, I set aside money for them so that they'd have something and be able to help your mother out with moving here, to the States. I also did the same thing for you, Kagome."

"You . . . did that for us?" Sango whispered.

"Hai," the demoness nodded. "I did. For helping me to earn my freedom."

"You didn't have to . . ." Kagome began, feeling slightly ashamed of herself for her previous behaviour towards the woman. It really had been uncalled for. Kagura waved her hand.

"I know I didn't have to. I wanted to. But that isn't the reason why I'm here."

"You're here because we've found Inuyasha and Sesshomaru," Miroku stated.

"Yes," Kagura replied. "That's the reason why I'm here. I've come here to tell you a little something about them . . ."

"We know about them," Sango interrupted. "We know that Inuyasha's dating Kanna's reincarnation, Trysten, and is best friends with Naraku's reincarnation, Jade."

"We also know that their parents, Mr. and Mrs. O'Connell, adopted them," Miroku supplied. "That . . ."

"Ryan has an aunt that works for the international adoption agency and she called them the moment the boys were up for adoption," Kagura finished. "She offered them first pick, in hopes that they would at least take Sesshomaru because he didn't look like he was full Japanese and would suffer in Japan because of it, even though he is."

Kagome felt her jaw dropping.

"How did you . . ."

"I'm that aunt," Kagura smiled, holding up her left hand to display the diamond engagement ring and wedding band. "I've been married to Ryan's uncle for almost fifty-five years now so I've been watching over them since Inuyasha was three weeks old."

Feeling more than just a little stunned, Kagome watched as Kagura set her bag down on the floor then begin to rummage through it. As she did so, she continued with her story.

"I called Ryan about six weeks after Torie had given birth to Little Ryan. From the first moment I met her, I knew I liked her. She had a vibrancy to her, a very strong life force . . . I'm not sure how else to explain it. . . Anyway, I remember her saying around the time she and Ryan had decided to try and conceive a child that, when it came to children, she had everything all planned out. She'd give birth to two of her own then adopt two more. That way she could have four children but only go through the pain of two. The O'Connells just laughed and thought it to be some cute idea of hers, figuring Ryan wouldn't go for it, not realizing that he'd already agreed. The Shinwas, the ones from Japan at least, were appalled but eventually just chalked it up to some strange American thing. That she wouldn't really live up to her word." Kagura paused, glancing up at them. "She wasn't joking about it. The moment I called and had asked them to look over Sesshomaru's file and mentioned that he had a baby brother, she asked for both of their files and fell in love with them. She couldn't bear to part them from each other so they adopted both boys. I made sure that the paper work went through as quickly as possible so they could have both boys home by Christmas. They've been a joy in my life ever since."

"I had no . . . no idea," Kagome shook her head.

"Nor would you," Kagura stated, pulling a folder out of her bag. "In fact, I was surprised when your mother chose Philadelphia to move to. I half-expected her to take you to either New York City or Los Angeles."

"You mean you didn't suggest Philadelphia to her?" Sango asked.

"No. I didn't. Not after the lengths Torie had gone through to help Sesshomaru and Inuyasha stop having nightmares."

"Nightmares?"

"Yes," Kagura said. "Nightmares. They were little, at the time, and they'd started shortly after Sesshomaru turned four. According to Torie, he was the first one to have the first nightmare. About the Bad Man."

"Don't you mean the boogie man?" Kagome frowned.

"No. I mean the Bad Man. Torie and Ryan never used the boogie man scare to keep their children in line. They never used _anything_ scary to keep the boys in line. If anyone even hinted at something like that, they'd have to deal with an irate Torie. She isn't someone you want to see angry. Anyway, somehow the nightmares managed to go from Sesshomaru to the younger children, especially Inuyasha. But Inuyasha's dreams were different from those that Sesshomaru had been having. As you can imagine, Torie was worried. She had the boys draw out who the Bad Man was then started taking them to a hypno-therapist, someone whom she really trusted." Kagura handed the folder over to Kagome. "It was their past lives . . . from the feudal era, trying to come through . . . they were both murdered by the same person."

"Naraku . . . it had to be Naraku," Kagome whispered, wiping tears from her eyes.

"No. It wasn't Naraku. Not by a long shot. I can tell you that one for sure, Kagome. He'd have been using that against in that final battle. I can assure you of that."

"Then who?" Sango demanded. "Who could have killed both Inuyasha and Sesshomaru like that? It had to be someone very powerful . . ."

"Or desperate. Take a look at the pictures, Kagome."

With trembling hands, Kagome flipped the folder open, her heart breaking even more. It couldn't have been . . .

"Kouga . . ."

"Hai. It was Kouga."

"But why? Why would he do something like that?" she whispered, her tears flowing freely.

"I don't know," Kagura answered. "I haven't seen wolf-boy since before the final battle with Naraku."

"What did Mrs. O'Connell do when she found out it was their past lives coming to them?" Miroku finally chimed in. "She couldn't have allowed the dreams to continue."

"She didn't," the demoness shook her head. "Like I said, she took them to a hypno-therapist that she trusts, a very good friend of hers. She had the memories suppressed. She wanted them to have a happy childhood without the past invading in. After the memories had been buried deeply within them, she gave the pictures to me for safe-keeping. Torie didn't want anything to trigger the nightmares again."

"What if they were to start having dreams about their past lives again? What will Mrs. O'Connell do then?" Kagome inquired.

"I don't know," Kagura shrugged. "They're both old enough to be able to handle them, I suppose, but I don't think it'll make any difference. They're not missing anything in their lives."

"No," the young girl shook her head, tears still flowing down them. "I don't suppose they are."

Kagura glanced at her and sighed, her expression sympathetic.

"Maybe in another time, things will be different for you and Inuyasha," she murmured. "Right now, this is the time for healing between the brothers and to smooth over whatever rifts they may have had in the past. How Naraku and Kanna factor in, I don't know. But I do know this. This isn't your time, Kagome."

"You're saying I shouldn't try to remind Inuyasha of the good that he had in the past?"

"Hai," Kagura nodded. "That's what I'm saying. Let the brothers heal their relationship. Let them be happy. If they're meant to remember you . . . all of you . . . once more then let it come on its own terms. That's all I'm going to ask. Could you please do that for me? Please?"

Kagome hesitated for a moment. If she agreed to this, then she risked losing Inuyasha until the next time they were reincarnated. She'd be left alone once more while he went on with his life, unaware of the history that the two of them shared.

'But if I press the issue, I could also end up ruining his life, too,' she told herself. 'I could end up making him miserable. And I don't want that over my head or my heart. I want him to be happy. More than anything, that's what I want.'

"I'll do this for you," she smiled, meeting Kagura's crimson gaze. "But only because I want Inuyasha to be happy."

"Thank you, Kagome. I'm very relieved to hear that," the wind demoness murmured, smiling in return. "Now I need those pictures back. Torie will have my head if I lose them."

Kagome couldn't help herself. She started to chuckle as she closed the folder and handed it back.

"I take it you're more scared of Torie than what you were of Naraku?" she teased lightly.

"You have no idea, Kagome. You have no idea."


	17. The Family Feud Begins

Speed listened carefully as Jem retold the story she had claimed to have told Trixie earlier, about how she knew for an absolute fact that Inuyasha O'Connell was indeed a diabetic and had been for the last five years. Her tale, he admitted, was powerful and compelling. He could almost feel sorry for the teen. Yet, he couldn't quite say that he truly believed Jem's story. Sure, she had been a long-time family friend, having been there on numerous occasions to cheer he and his family on, but she was also an actress. She could put whatever emotion she needed to into a story.

Something his wife seemed to be forgetting at that moment.

"You don't believe me, do you?" came the quiet yet sudden inquiry. He blinked then shook his head. Jem had somehow managed to catch him thinking just that. How, he couldn't say. She just had.

"Not really," Speed confessed slowly. "I'm sorry, but there's just something about that boy I don't trust. He _can't_ be trusted."

"You don't know that," Jem stated, her tone remaining quiet. "Now, I'll admit, I think Torie's nuts for letting him dress like that but that's her decision. She knows about it and encourages him to be himself."

"Torie's too easy-going when it comes to her children," he spat, his anger rising up suddenly. "She refuses to . . ."

"Refuses to what, Speed?" the pink-haired singer interrupted. "She refuses to let you bully her around when it comes to her youngest son? Because that's probably how it feels to her."

"Is that what she's told you?"

"No," Jem shook her head. "I don't talk to Torie. I haven't since the summer my band and I spent with her. I personally don't care for the way she's raised her children and the fact that she manages the Missfits. I'm just telling you what I witnessed that summer. That's all."

"She . . . manages the Missfits?" Speed's eyes widened at that bit of information. "But her last name is O'Connell . . ."

"Her married name, Speed. Her maiden and professional name is Cronkhite."

"As in the author Torie Cronkhite?"

"The very same," Jem replied. Speed stood there, slowly digesting everything he'd been told. It certainly put a new perspective on the situation, and he had to admit that he admired the strength and personality that Torie and her husband had shown. They were notorious for working together, often on several projects at once.

'Just like Trixie and me,' he mused idly. However, he didn't feel a change in attitude towards them or their children. If anything, he felt more than just a little disappointed in them. After all, their youngest son wasn't living up what to he believed should have been their expectations for the boy. Speed shook his head.

"Their family name doesn't mean anything to me," he declared quietly. "They're a disappointment, both as parents and as neighbours. They should know better than to let a child like him run wild."

"I'm sure they feel the same way about you, Speed."

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As with all breaks from school, Spring Break seemed to have flown by without even so much as a blink. Before Inuyasha knew it, his hours at the art school and Tsukiyo's had been cut back to a grand total of ten hours – five at Tsukiyo's and five at the school – so as to accommodate his schooling. And his fencing lessons. And his martial arts lessons. And extracurricular activities. The fifteen-year-old sometimes wondered how he managed to survive the hectic schedule his parents had set up for their family. With a new baby on the way . . . things were going to be even more hectic.

'Not that having a baby will slow Mom down,' he mused as he made his way to his art class. 'Nothing slows her down. How does Dad even cope? How are we going to cope, for that matter? That kid doesn't know what he's getting into.'

To say that his parents had high expectations would have been an understatement. He and Catherine had talked once about what their parents expected from them and compared their tendencies to see who happened to be the most strict. While he had to admit that Speed and Trixie expected a lot from their children and were more strict in their desires, they still had nothing on his parents. Good grades, participation in _some_ kind of school activity, the extra activities outside of school, working, staying out of trouble . . . sure, he and his siblings had the freedom to dress however they wanted to but the flipside to that freedom was the inquisition they faced if they weren't where they supposed to be when they were supposed to be when they said they would. His mother had a tendency to be slightly paranoid slash narcotic. That's why he, his brothers, and sister had cell phones. Torie's way of keeping tabs on them. Though, the more he thought about it and his parents' strange tendencies, the more he realized he didn't want them any other way. They were _his_ parents. They took him and Sesshomaru in when they didn't have to and gave them something that they may not have truly had otherwise. A family.

'Can't ask for anything more than that,' he grinned, stepping into the art room. He took his usual place then set about retrieving his supplies. Unlike the juniors and seniors in the art class, who were taking the course because it was an easy credit, Inuyasha took the class seriously. Very seriously. He truly loved art. If his parents would have allowed it, Inuyasha would have spent all of his time at the art museum, where his father used to work. He loved art that much.

As the second bell rang, Inuyasha took his seat, the only freshman in the entire class. The teacher sat in her normal spot and called out roll. A new day had started and it was time to meet it head on.

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"Rex, you have absolutely no grounds to stand on," came the exasperated sigh. "If Mrs. O'Connell wishes to home school Inuyasha in English, she may do so. There isn't anything we can do to get her to change her mind. We're lucky that any of her children attend our school. They don't have to, you know."

Rex heaved a sigh then shook his head. The situation he was now in had become something of a routine since January. He'd go to the principal, to the superintendent, and to the school board in regards to Inuyasha O'Connell not attending his English class. He'd confront them every week. Each time he always got the same answer: Torie O'Connell reserved the right to home school her children as she saw fit and there wasn't anything anyone could do to change her mind, that he had no grounds to stand on. To say that it aggravated him was an understatement. He hated the idea of home schooling, even if for only one subject. Children, as far as he was concerned, needed a rigourous schedule when it came to school. They needed social interaction. Granted, Inuyasha was there for the entire day and received such a schedule and the interaction, but that hardly mattered to Rex. It was the fact that it seemed the system was being bent in favour of one student.

"All I'm saying is that it isn't right for him not to be in my class," he stated. "None of the other students have tested out."

"The other students could drop out of your class if they so chose to, Rex," Dean Stanton replied patiently. "In fact, there is nothing stopping their parents from pulling them out of this school and taking them to another school. Or home schooling them, for that matter. We're very lucky to even have a school at all."

"What?" Rex blinked. He hadn't heard about this before.

"It was several years ago, just after Torie had given birth to her first son, Ryan O'Connell II. Because of statewide budget cuts, we had to fire several staff members. We had to cut programs and classes. Even bussing. There were nearly forty students to one teacher. In several cases, there were more. We were almost bankrupt. Ryan and Torie O'Connell saved this school and continue to do so to this very day. You wouldn't have a job today if it weren't for them."

"So that's why you allow Inuyasha to drop out of English classes if he so pleases? Because you don't want to lose your financial backing?"

"No," the principal shook his head. "That child is allowed to test out so his grades remain at an acceptable level. He feels that his mother is a far better educator when it comes to that subject and will really accept no other teacher. I'm surprised he stuck with the first semester English class, to be honest."

"It still sounds like you're showing favouritism," Rex pointed out. "Especially to the O'Connell family."

"You don't get it, do you?" the black-haired man shook his head, folding his arms. "Inuyasha O'Connell isn't the only student who tests out of classes and is home schooled in one particular subject. There are a lot of students who do that, especially if their parents have a degree in a particular subject."

"Why do you allow that?" he inquired, appalled by that revelation.

"Because we're a progressive school, Rex. We are out to prove that our students can compete at an international level. That's why we have such high standards. That is why we require more of our students than other schools in our district. We're after a high quality education. We _want_ our students to succeed."

"This approach cannot be working, though! It's . . ."

"It's working," Dean stated. "And it has been. We have gone from being a low-ranking school to the highest ranking school in all of Pennsylvania. Because of people like the O'Connells. Now, if you care as much about this boy's education as you say you do, you'll drop this. It isn't healthy for either you or me."

Rex frowned. He wanted to continue the conversation. He wanted to know more about how the school's progressive attitude affected its students. Granted, he still didn't think it was right for Inuyasha to be able to test out of English, but it was a losing battle. And he knew it. If anything, he'd have to start talking to Torie O'Connell about it, and he didn't believe that she'd listen to him. Not when she had a higher degree than what he did.

"I do care," he finally admitted. "It just seems strange that he drops out of my class but not the for the previous teacher."

"You mean because of what your nephew did at the beginning of the year?"

"Yeah," Rex nodded, know it was only half the truth. "Because of that."

Dean chuckled at that.

"You don't have to worry about your nephew's behaviour towards Inuyasha O'Connell affecting his decision to leave your class, Rex. They're very good friends. Have been for some time. Inuyasha just likes a challenge when it comes to English. That's all."

Rex blinked. Inuyasha and Greg were friends? That was news to him.

"You mean it has nothing to do with my last name? At all?"

"Nope," Dean shook his head. "Not at all. The boy just likes to be challenged. He didn't feel you could give him one."

"I see . . . thank you for your time, Dean. I appreciate it."

"Anytime, Rex. Anytime."

888888888

"You're kidding me, right?"

Speed watched as his older brother shook his head. The school day had ended, and he and Trixie were waiting for their children to come home from their activities. Rex had just stopped by, giving them some interesting pieces of information.

"No. I'm not. The O'Connells have been contributing to the school's funding for the last fifteen years," Rex stated. "Helped to keep the district from going bankrupt. The school has taken a very progressive stance because of it."

"I see . . . that is interesting. Very interesting indeed. I take it you were told not to keep pressing the issue about Inuyasha dropping out of your class?"

"Pretty much," the older man sighed, plopping down into a chair. "And that he isn't the only student who tests out of certain subjects. Other students test out as well, especially if they feel that their parents can teach it better than the faculty."

"But Inuyasha dropped out of your class because of me, I'm sure . . ."

"No," Rex shook his head. "According to Dean Stanton, he didn't. His testing out had more to do with wanting more of a challenge than with who I'm related to."

"Somehow, I don't believe that," Speed snorted. "He just doesn't want to be near you because of me. I just know it."

"Well, maybe if you'd leave him alone and quit saying he's a trouble-maker, he wouldn't be like that," came the quiet retort. Rex's eyes widened, as did Speed's, and both men turned to see Janine Trotter standing in the doorway, her arms crossed. Next to her stood Trixie, a sheepish expression on his wife's face.

"Janine, you just don't understand . . ."

"Understand what, Speed? That you've been harassing a fifteen-year-old kid? That you're not getting your way with the O'Connells? That they refuse to see things the way you see them? That you're obsessed with proving to them and the entire community what you believe to be right? Tell me, what am I not understanding?"

"Janine . . ."

"No," the light-haired woman shook her head. "I'm not going to listen to this anymore. I'm tired of it. That boy has done nothing to you and yet you still go out of your way to make his life a living hell. No wonder he doesn't want to have Rex as his teacher. He probably feels Rex is going to try railroading him the same you're trying to."

Speed narrowed his eyes, and balled his hands into fists. Never once had Janine ever taken a tone like that with him. They'd been friends since they'd first met, and he'd even helped her when her father had inadvertently endangered her life. He had expected, because of that, that she'd be by his side no matter what. And now . . . now this. Before he could say anything, however, Janine turned to Trixie.

"I'll talk with you later, Trixie. I just . . . I need to get away."

Having said that, the petite woman dashed out the door, slamming it behind her. Speed felt the muscles in his shoulder relax as she left as well as an odd sense of loss and foreboding in his heart. He'd never had a friend walk out on him before and it stung. Then he quickly shook it off. He'd deal with Janine's attitude eventually, but he had other things he had to worry about. Like proving to the community that he and his family could be outstanding pillars and contributors. He'd done a bit of research within the last week, and had discovered the number of businesses that Ryan and Torie owned. The couple also owned several homes within their neighbourhood as well as a house in the country. And now Rex had just told him about the financial contributions they made to West Hall High. If the O'Connells could run several business, own a few homes, and contribute to the school's funding, well . . . so could he. All he had to do was start writing up the business plans, real estate to look for, and a financial contribution to make. It was competition, in his mind's eye. A different kind of competition that he wasn't used to but a competition nonetheless. Something he'd gladly jump into. He glanced at Trixie and motioned for her to join him. A broad smile graced his face as she stood next to him and he turned to face his brother once more. He snaked an arm around her waist. Rex raised an eyebrow at him.

"Is everything all right, Speed?"

"Just fine," he replied with the same broad smile. "In fact, Trixie and I have some good news. Some very good news."

888888888

"Here we go, Mrs. O'Connell. I just need for you to sign here and date it."

Torie smiled a little at the "official" attitude the blonde-haired man exuded. His name was Jack Bartoli, and he was a very dear friend to their family. Had been for the same amount of time as Robert and Val. For some reason, whenever Jack had a business proposal for her and Ryan, they became Mr. and Mrs. O'Connell. Never Ryan and Torie. Not until the paperwork had been signed. Pen in hand, Torie leaned over the table and signed the document in all of the appropriate places. Once she had finished, she glanced up. A warm smile greeted her.

"I can't believe I'm doing this . . ."

"Neither can I . . . but you are. And I appreciate it," Jack murmured. "I greatly appreciate it."

"I know," she smiled. "So . . . when do Ryan and I get to see this new building that we now own?"


	18. Summer Vacation

"_The time has come to say good-bye."_

Topaz-hued eyes skimmed over the picture display then at the open house invitation. A soft groan escaped Sesshomaru as he did so. His mother, it had seemed, opted to go for some rather embarrassing pictures of him to display for his graduation open house. Pictures of him with spaghetti sauce smeared all over his face, taking a bubble bath . . . though there weren't any pictures of him naked in a bucket. He'd seen what his great-aunt had done to one of his cousins for her open house invitation. Pictures of now and then . . . and his aunt had the naked-baby-in-the-bucket picture done. He was nearly four when his parents had adopted him, making it impossible for them to have his picture done like that.

'But Ryan and Inuyasha had their pictures done like that,' he thought, a light smirk gracing his features. 'So did Anna . . . Not that Mother would ever do anything like that to them . . . She has stories . . .'

Again, his eyes skimmed over the display and invitation. Granted, it had the potential to embarrass him but found that it truly didn't. If anything, he was proud of what he was seeing. His father and his youngest brother had put a lot of effort into the artwork that adorned the sides of the cardboard display and around the pictures. His sister had even taken the time to write a poem, which had been written in calligraphy by Little Ryan. In all, it had truly been a family effort, their testament to their love for him . . . and their love for annoying him.

'The things and the lengths they'll go to . . .' he shook his head. 'How did I end up with such a crazy family?'

"Hey, twerp."

The sound of the all-so-familiar feminine voice cut through his thoughts, startling him some. But he'd come to expect that from Pizzazz. After all, the dark-haired singer loved it when she could sneak up on him. It was a rarity and small victory for her when she could take him by surprise.

"Hey, Pizzazz," he smiled, turning to face her. He gave her a quick hug then returned his gaze to the display before him. She wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "How are things going?"

"Eh, same old, same old, really," she shrugged. "Your mom's got us scheduled for a bunch of photo shoots and time in the recording studio. She even wants us to play at your open house."

"I can imagine," Sesshomaru chuckled. "She really does want it to feel like a party. How do you feel about it, though?"

"I actually don't mind," Pizzazz replied. "Considering everything your family has done for us, it's the least we could do."

She leaned forward at that moment, her gaze focusing on one picture in particular. When she saw what it was, she chuckled again. The picture itself was of the Missfits with he and his siblings. It had been taken the summer after Inuyasha had been diagnosed with diabetes, and six months after the Missfits had fired Eric Raymond as their manager and had hired his mother. Pizzazz had stated then, and the year before, that she couldn't stand children yet she had done very well being around him and his brothers and sister.

As she looked at the picture, Pizzazz let out a soft sigh.

"Man, I can't believe that you're graduating high school already. It just seems like yesterday that you were this fourteen-year-old snot that no one could impress."

Sesshomaru laughed at that.

"Yeah, I guess I was hard to impress . . ."

"You still are, kiddo," Pizzazz turned her gaze to him. "You still are."

"Oh? How do you figure?"

"Because you have a stubborn streak a mile wide . . . because your mother has told me about how Speed Racer's oldest daughter has been pursuing you yet you don't even look in her direction . . . If I understand anything about that family at all, it's the drive and desire to win and be the best. It has to be driving that girl crazy, you not even giving her the time of day."

"There's more to it than my not being impressed with her," Sesshomaru murmured. "It goes deeper than that. Much deeper."

"I know," the singer smiled wanly. "I know."

888888888

"_Summer's coming. Get ready to shine."_

The sounds of a guitar being strummed caught her attention. Sure, she had heard guitars being played before. She was a teenager and prone to excited fits over the latest fads in music and movies. It was the fact that it was coming from the O'Connell garage that had caught her attention. Cautiously, Kagome approached the opened garage doors and peered inside. Her eyes widened at what she saw.

Sitting on a stool, an acoustic guitar in his lap, was Inuyasha. His dark hair had been pulled back into a low tail, his head lowered as he concentrated on his music. The tune itself had a rather lively beat, and it appeared that he didn't even notice her as she approached. Awed, Kagome stood in the doorway, intent on listening and losing herself in the music.

"I heard you were sick a lot."

"Huh?"

Her heart jumped into her throat at those simple words, and she had to refrain from startling. She noticed that he didn't even look up from the guitar. He just kept on playing.

"I heard you were sick a lot. That's how come you're not a senior this year."

"Who told you that I'd been sick a lot?"

"Those friends of yours from Japan," he replied. "I've heard them talk . . . they kept saying how it was a miracle that you were still able to move with everything that had been wrong with you."

"Oh," Kagome smiled nervously, her cheeks burning. "Yeah. I was . . ."

"I see . . . How much of it's really true? The illnesses you had, I mean . . ."

Kagome blinked. His tone had been quiet, calm . . . quite unlike the Inuyasha she'd gotten used to. There had even been a hint of disbelief in his voice.

"Uh, well . . . it's . . . complicated . . ."

"You weren't really sick then, were you?"

"Not all the time, no," Kagome shook her head. "There was a situation I had to deal with and it ate a lot of my time. The illnesses were my grandfather's way of trying to be discreet about what was going on."

"And what was going on?" His gaze finally raised to meet hers, violet eyes glimmering with interest. Kagome opened her mouth to say something then remembered the promise that she had made Kagura at the beginning of spring break. A promise that she didn't dare break. A promise that had to do with keeping Inuyasha's present life intact. She then sighed and shook her head.

"It isn't really something I want to talk about . . . it wasn't exactly the most pleasant of situations and I ended up losing someone very dear to me."

"Oh . . . sorry to hear about that . . ."

"It's all right," she shook her head dismissively. "You didn't know. Besides, it isn't like this person has truly left me. I carry his memory around with me everywhere I go."

He smiled a little at that.

"Sounds like something my mother would say."

"Really," Kagome folded her arms as a light smile touched her lips. "That's . . . good to hear."

"Yeah . . . she's really cool about a lot of things. Strict . . . but still cool."

'I'm glad you think so,' Kagome thought as he stood up and put his guitar away. 'Because I sure don't think so . . . not if she's keeping your past away from you.'

"Well, Kagome," he stated, straightening his back. A mischievous light had entered his eyes. "I'd love to stand here and talk with you some more but I have to get going. My mom's going to be home any minute and I need to get ready for work. I'll see you around, okay?"

Before she could say anything more, he disappeared into the house, guitar case in hand. Kagome watched him go then slowly tore herself away. Summer was starting and she had no idea as to what she was going to do with herself. America was still a strange and unusual place for her and with the quest over . . .

'I'll find something,' she swore to herself. 'One way or another, I'll find something.'

She continued on her way.

888888888

"_I've got sunshine . . . on a cloudy day . . ."_

Wood smashed against wood as the three O'Connell boys sparred in a two-to-one match in the front yard. Around them were family and friends, everyone celebrating a once-in-a-lifetime event: Sesshomaru's high school graduation. Speed couldn't believe the number of people that he was seeing. Relatives from near and far had traveled for this moment. It was turning out to be quite the party, and it was for only one person. Of course, he and his family were there because Sesshomaru had extended invitations to Greg and Catherine, and to his parents. Danielle, much to her chagrin and dismay, had not received one. His eyes traveled to where the three boys were swinging their wooden swords, his eyes widening.

'I've seen some outstanding fights in my time but nothing like this! This is . . . absolutely unbelievable!'

There was no denying that all three boys had an air of grace about them. All motion was fluid, every thrust, every parry . . . despite their youth, the boys had experience in fighting. It simply astounded him to see it. In spite of his awe, however, Speed felt that no one could compete with his oldest son when it came down to fighting. He'd taken it upon himself to teach all of his children how to fight, and he felt himself to be more than a capable fighter. His skills, after all, had saved his and Trixie's lives on more than one occasion.

As he watched the boys spar, he noticed, from the corner of his eye, the way his oldest daughter kept her eyes glued on Sesshomaru. Austen, Sesshomaru's girlfriend, was at one of the tables, talking with Torie and not even paying attention to what her beau was doing. The two females were laughing about something. Speed heard them from where he stood. Not for the first time, he wondered how come Sesshomaru stayed with Austen, especially when it was obvious she wasn't even interested in what skills he possessed.

'He's a strange child, that's for sure.'

Quietly, he made his way towards Danielle. Once he reached her, he tapped her lightly on the shoulder. Pale green eyes met his and she smiled.

"Hey, Daddy . . . isn't he magnificent?"

Of course, "he" happened to be Sesshomaru . . . who was now down to one sparring partner. Inuyasha had somehow been eliminated from the competition.

"He is," Speed agreed somewhat reluctantly. "I'm sure your brother could best him in a fight, though."

"Probably . . . but then again, maybe not. It's very hard to say . . ."

For a moment, Speed just watched his daughter as she watched the oldest O'Connell boy continue to spar with his brother. There was no doubt in his mind that she was in love. He just hoped that she didn't end up with a broken heart.

'Only time will tell,' he thought, leaving her be and heading for refreshment table. He'd seen a rather prominent business man there, talking with Ryan O'Connell, and he wanted to catch the man before he left. Speed had some major plans for the summer. He had a prominent family to compete with, after all.

The summer was starting to heat up.


End file.
